Abnormaly
by Fucking Tomatoes
Summary: Ash retrieves shocking news which leads him running from a secret organization who are out to get him. But why? While being chased down, he bumps into someone fated for capture too..only he hadn't expected to see his best friend involved in this v3
1. Preface

Abnormaly

Preface

(January 10th: 9:58 PM [Kanto Region: Location-Unknown] (_ 5,478 days until retribution_)

Thin rays of light beamed through cracks in the splintered ceiling and on the tall man below. In the moonlight, the man's breath came out in puffs of cold air as he rubbed the sides of his arms for warmth. The scent of rusted metal and the salted sea lingered in the atmosphere, reminding him of a place he used to go to in Jhoto during the summertime. Inhaling the familiar air, the black haired man gazed deeply into the dark room, trying to make out silhouetted figures in the shadows. He could feel something in that pitch darkness calling out to him, beckoning him to come closer, as if that darkness would surely protect him and help him find the peace that had always been so far away. He entered into another light beam and came to a halt. Closing his eyes, he basked in the moon's radiance, and thought of all the things in the world.

Every little memory, words, and lessons that made itself known to him, slowly faded away as they came, and were replaced by the muted darkness. He would have to forget everything in order to move forward. Opening his eyes again to the pale light, he felt lighter and hollower inside. The clasp of a switch picked his hearing and an electric zap came from one of the florescent lights hanging above him. It flickered for a second, and then from the first row of lights following down, they all turned on. The moon's glow disappeared from his touch and was replaced by the blinking light of the warehouse's old lamps. His eyes blurred to the sudden change of lightening, forcing him to blink away the tinge of pain that sprouted from the back of his eye.

Rubbing his eyes, he spoke to no one in particular, "This place still runs after all these years?" After constant rubbing and the adjustment of his eyes, something struck the back of his shoulder, and hissed at him to continue moving. He glanced over his shoulder to a man a few inches shorter than him, wearing a white lab coat. The older man scratched at his silver goatee and grunted rudely at him to walk.

Aaron secretly wanted to wring these people's necks.

Dipping his head in apology, Aaron continued onward without a word. He could feel the man's glare bore into his back, making him a bit uncomfortable. Aaron tried his best to ignore the old man, but found himself facing a crowd of angry looking doctors instead. They all crowded around him as he walked past them, all eyes latched onto him like a hawk on a piece of meat. Then it wasn't just the old fart that was following him, but now a crowd of angry looking doctors.

Aaron felt annoyed having all these people surrounding him like some jail mate. It was bad enough that he was sent here to be experimented on. Aaron's hazel eyes wandered around the warehouse, consuming his surroundings. A shiver ran up his spine. Metal, rectangular planks bolted to the walls where covered with dents and scratches, the white tiles underneath his feet were commonly stained with black splatters, and the warehouse felt like a meat locker. Continuing down the room between unused stainless steel counters, Aaron would spot movement, seeing shadows dart across the floor and split. It was a sight right out of a horror film. The 28 year old cuffed his hands over his lips and blew warm air into them. _These people must really hate me..._Aaron sighed, surpassing another shiver from passing up his spine. All he wanted to do was get the hell out of here.

But he couldn't. If he did he would only be dragged back and be tossed forcefully onto a metal table without a sleek of help. If he left, these people would go after his wife, or go after Jason. Aaron clenched his jaw, recalling the memory just hours ago where a group of black coated men intruded his house, and threatened to hurt his wife if he didn't come with them. The back of his neck heated and the hairs on his arms rose like the hackles on a dog's back. He really hated these people. He really hated himself.

Tiny flutters of blue like flames began to spark around the outside of his skin, thin ribbons of silver and blue wrapping from the tips of his fingers up to his shoulders. Sensing that his anger was getting out of hand, Aaron abruptly demanded the azure flames to settle down and return back inside him. Hesitantly the flames fluttered and vanished in seconds. Taking a few breathes to control his anger Aaron wished his power to stay put and told it that it was not needed for right now. He felt his abnormal power grow weak, and slip away into the darkness deep inside him. Touching the center of his stomach where the power had slipped away, Aaron's hazel eyes darkened and a frown deepened on his features.

The power that lived inside him was what the reason these people were after him. This was the reason why he was here. From what Aaron could remember from what his father had told him, the power that resided inside him wasn't from a freak accident that Aaron first thought it came from, and confirmed it to be fate. His father had the same power resided inside him up until his passing, and said that him and Aaron were _special. _It wasn't just them, but rather their ancestors had been the first to be granted this awesome power, and had somehow been able to pass it down through the generations. It always made him wonder how his father had been able to live peacefully all these years with this powerful force always begging to come out. Aaron gripped at his black shirt as the power inside him moved like a snake made out of electricity. Throughout his years of living, he had never grown used to the thing that lived inside him. It was disturbing to think that he had no power over himself, and that someday this force could someday take over himself unless he discovers how to call it out on demand.

"Sir" behind him, the old man from before grappled his shoulder, pulling Aaron out of his thoughts and a few steps backwards. Aaron swung around in annoyance and glared into the man's black beady eyes. The man showed no emotion and his voice rumbled in a hoarse tone, "Please wait here while we open the door and get your room situated." With a brief curl of his lip, the man slugged past him, followed by the rest of the white coated posy. Aaron made a face and folded his arms over his chest. _What got up his ass?_

As the group of white huddled around the sealed stainless steel door, Aaron stood back with two men who had been waiting for him when they arrived. Aaron randomly glanced to the person on the left side of him, to a blonde man who had an unusual shade of gold in his eyes. The gentleman wore the same coat as the other five people within the group, except that his coat had a patch clipped onto his right shoulder of a blue bird made of fire. Aaron glared at the man as the flashes of his memories reminded him not to trust him.

This man who was once his best friend was not to be trusted.

The blonde moved his eyes to him, his eyebrows crunching up in anger "What are you doing glaring at me with those ungodly eyes?" Aaron kept silent, remembering to keep his calm. The man crossed his arms and faced him, "How pathetic. You're supposed to have all the power in the world, yet here you are, chained and dragged around like a broken puppy."

"I wasn't dragged here." He snapped, "And I am just like everyone who's here Daniel." The man laughed at him, causing Aaron to tighten his fists. "You're the one who sent those assholes to my house."

The man named Daniel grinned deviously, "It was the only way to convince you to give in"

"Your men threatened my wife!"

"Your wife was in danger even before I barged in. You honestly think that she can live a carefree life with the likes of you?"

"Shut up! The point is you brought my wife into this!" Aaron could feel electricity all around him, which was not a good sign. "She didn't need to be involved—"

"But she was" he interrupted, stuffing his hand into his coat pocket for a cigarette, "She was involved because she was with you. You see? What if someone less passionate were to come instead of me?" Daniel smiled as he found a single cig, and placed it in his mouth, "That would be horrible."

Aaron could not hold back his anger as he called out the power within him to come out, the being inside him rushing out to his aid. An explosion of energy blasted out from the core of his body, sparking ribbons of silver and many shades of blue to surround the outside layer of his skin. The ribbons morphed together into a mirage kind of effect, creating a force known as his Aura. Daniel felt as if an invisible bus had slammed right into his body, pushing him a couple feet away from the glowing man before him. An orchestra of yells and gasps came from the people by the steel door, captivated and frightened of the sight of the man's onslaught power. It was almost god like, a sight from a fiction book or movie. Biting on his cigarette, Daniel searched for another object inside the opposite pocket of his coat, still watching the man who hated him begin to walk towards him. His long fingers wrapped around the cold handle, and quickly brought it out to face the stalking man in front of him. Aaron halted seeing the silver gun in Daniel's hands and only grew angrier. An animal like roar escaped from his throat as he took a chance and lunged himself at him. The gun was faster.

The sound of it was very faint, like the sound an arrow made when it is sent through the air. The bullet buried a deep wound inside his shoulder blade, on contact releasing an excruciating shock that sent him to the ground. His back collided with ground painfully, knocking the wind right out of his lungs, and sending the power to quickly fade away. Aaron tried to pick himself up, but found himself paralyzed to the point that he could not even lift his head. Panting and feeling his shoulder begin to burn, he heard an annoying cackle from somewhere above him. Shortly, the blonde was back in his view, bending over him with the gun he shot him with dangling in his hands. Aaron wanted to kick him in the face.

"So this is the man made out of the hands of god himself? You are an interesting man Aaron Ketchum."


	2. Prologue

Prologue

A world that is depended on light is a world that opens the eyes of believers, welcomes the hearts of those who are not afraid to feel, and used in your deepest troubles when you are in a need of help. A world that hides behind in the shadows is known as darkness, a negative and horrifying existence that sends fear into the hearts of others. Most of what we see that emerges from the dark is strong and lashing emotions that take over the point of views of others. Not that the pitch blackness blinded them, but it was as if there was a sheet of film that covered over their eyes, causing their images to appear blurry, and caused them to become confused about what lies ahead of him or her. This is how people joined the darkness…. Confused, and not sure about what lays ahead of them. Considered by many, darkness symbolizes as being evil, as light is the symbol of all that is good. _The world would be a better place if only good existed _one group would say. Another would shout proudly that _evil shall rule over everything. _Both sides are wrong however, as that good would never last without evil. To be good you must have a purpose that made you take the role. As to being evil, you needed a person to bring troubles on. There would be no night or day, no love or hate, no reason to exist. Light and dark depends on each other, so we must learn how to cope with its conflicts, and begin to live in a new dawn…..

_The meaning of Right and Wrong_

_J. Eclipse_

As the tall woman read the ripped page taken out of a book she found lying on the floor, she simply folded it, and placed it inside her coat pocket. She lifted her topaz eyes to the empty gallon of gasoline next to her feet, then to her partner that stood at the doorway. The man's wardrobe was strictly black: black jacket with a black hood that covered his blond hair, black pants, shoes, eyes… down to his tattoo on his neck. He was tall and had that type of calm and easygoing personality despite his sinister appearance.

"You done sightseeing?" The woman smiled and nodded a confirmed yes, "I already gathered the data that our friend was _so _kind to provide for us" He waved a red flash drive in the air,

"And everything seems to be going as planned."

"That's how it should be." She responded with a laugh. _  
_Her partner chewed on the rubber end of the flash drive in a playful manor, and spun on his heel, "Well I'll let you finish up here."

She waited until he was gone from her sight, then she swiftly bent down to a man cringing against the cabinets, and lowered her voice. "So Mr. Jason" the middle age man flinched when her lips formed his name, "I'm going to ask you one more time, and be wise with your words." She raised a lighter up to his face, "I don't like to kill of important sources." Jason stared at her in fear, "Where is he?"

It took him a second to gather his voice, and to speak out over a whisper, "He's safe."

"That's good to hear…" she played with the silver lighter, flicking it off and on. "Is he on this island?"

His voice shook, "N-no."

"Where is he then?"

Jason didn't want to be here, in this situation. He wanted to be with his wife and family, wanted to go home and tell everyone how his day went. Not here. The man inhaled the fumes of gasoline on his clothes, and closed his eyes. He swore he wouldn't tell anyone about the boy, he took an oath that he would put his life first before his. This boy was important, more important than his life…the world. Jason opened his eyes to the woman again, and felt strangely calmer.

"I'm not going to answer that question."

She frowned, and slowly her eyes grew into yellow slits. "Wrong answer."

A burst of flame appeared from her small lighter, and she dropped it on the floor. Soon the floor was ignited, and it slowly was making its way to the broken man. Jason knew he was doing the right thing. This was the right thing to do. He would miss his family, and regret not having the time to say that he loved them. He closed his eyes right when the tall being began to walk away. He would miss his wife the most.

A shattering scream bounced off the walls inside the crumbling building, and there was no one there that cared to help. Outside the man from before leaned against a helicopter, and watched the black smoke and amber rise into the air. "So he was no help?" he assumed.

"Sadly enough, he wasn't." she walked up the small hill to him, removing a burgundy strand of hair away from her face, "Well it doesn't matter, we at least have some information."

"Always the positive one." He grinned, and opened the helicopter door.

The woman glanced behind her shoulder to the burning building, and then back to her friend, "Someone has to shed some light."

H-Hello! I hope you liked the prologue to m first Pokémon ship. Um, ash and may will be in the next chapter, so no need to worry! I would really like to know how you felt about the first chapter so leave me a review! I love them soooo much! Thank you for reading and hope to see you soon! :D

Kimi


	3. Chapter 1: Birthday

Ewhaaaaaaa! I'm so sorry for not updating so quickly! Like a complete idiot, I deleted this chapter on accident, and had to re-write the chapter (twice!) =_=;; sorry…

Anyways thank you for the reviews, I greatly appreciate them, and so now I reward you with the next chapter! Thanks again and sorry for the late update….

**...**Chapter 1**...**

Birthday

Day hazed under a covering of clouds that hovered over Mt. Shady, as the skies warned Pokémon of a possible shower coming ahead. The plains of Mt. Shady were wide, refreshing, and a cave accompanied the space just a mile away. The grass grew just at the height of your ankles and the air was crisp and clean. Inhaling this air was better than inhaling city smog, or being on a boat were you had to stay inside your room. Sinnoh was known for its rather large landscapes, drastic weather, and interesting Pokémon that claimed the land. In fact a few Pokémon played freely in the grassy field. A few Sinnoh Pokémon such as a small Piplup and a large Mamoswine were comparing graceful moves to each other, as other Pokémon who came from other regions played tag together. They weren't alone though, as their dear friends also accompanied them. Three people in fact: one trainer, one breeder, and one coordinator. All different ages, all different tastes and likings, yet all of them were so close.

The youngest, and only female in the group was named Dawn. Her spunky, _go get em'!_ attitude usually lightened up the group's personalities, and her sense of what was cute and adorable was completely a thing that the others in her group could not fully understand. With her long midnight blue hair and matching eyes, pink boots, pink scarf, and her trademark black and white dress anyone who even laid eyes on her could tell that she was very girly. Her white beanie with a pink poke ball emblem was thrown inside her yellow backpack at the moment, so only her golden barrettes pulled her hair away from her face. Dawn was currently sitting in a chair, occupied with trying to answer a question that her older friend had asked. Obviously she was having a hard time guessing which Nurse Joy or Officer Jenny he loved the most.

The 20 year old perverted cook…or in his friend's cases Brock, was busily igniting a fire so he could start frying up some rice that he had recently bought. Brock is oddly tall for his age, and had the most narrowed eyes in the world. His appearance seemed to set people off guard because his actions were completely different from his looks. From first glance, you would expect him to be the type of guy who was kind, and knew almost everything if you asked him. With his long tan khaki pants, Black and Russet striped vest over his forest green collared shirt, he looked like an average 20 year old guy. Well that was the case if you were male, but if you happened to be an _older female_ that happened to cross his way, that was a totally different story. His hair always stayed the same also, spiked up with gel, and his shoes matched his vest too. Once he got the fire up, he turned to his bag to take out his trusty frying pan, and rummaged for the oil.

"Say Ash" he moved more things inside his endless hole of stuff, "Didn't I just buy oil?"

The teen with the name popped a potato chip into his mouth, and lazily turned his head to the lost breeder, "On the table Brock."

Ash laid down in the plush grass with a bag of potato chips balanced on his chest, munching them hungrily as if he hadn't ate a bag just a few minutes ago. The raven haired teen was a laid back kind of guy when he had nothing to do, but when it came to battling or capturing new Pokémon he became a different motivated person. His heart was big, and his head was rather unexpected, and unique. Ash was the person you depended on when you were feeling down and his motivation and passion for Pokémon was greatly viewed upon. Sometimes he could be a major hot head, and dive into predicaments head on without thinking, but he wasn't the type of person who would run away from those troubles, or hold grudges. His uniform contained a black vest with a yellow 'V' stripe angling out from where the zipper would connect, and underneath a black t-shirt clad him. The 15- or rather now 16 year old trainer exhaled deeply, ran a green and black gloved hand through his pitch black hair, and smiled up to the clouds. It was nice to just sit back and breathe for once.

"Ash— ah here it is!" Brock snapped the bottle of oil off the table and splashed some in the pan, "Put those chips away, you'll spoil your lunch."

"Knowing Ash's stomach, he'd probably still want to eat after, hmmm, the fifth bag he's already devoured?" Ash swung his head to the right and frowned. Dawn laughed to herself with the company of Brock, and kicked her feet up on the empty chair next to her. Ash rolled his eyes and popped another chip in his mouth. She shrugged, and turned to Brock, "Is it… Officer Jenny form Snow Point city?" Brock held a stupid smile on his lips with hearts practically flying everywhere. "I knew it!" she slapped an excited fist on the table, "She's the one with the cool glasses right?" The breeder shook his head to control himself, and nodded. Dawn cheered with a pumped up fist in success.

"I thought you would have liked a Joy more than a Jenny." Ash thought aloud.

"Ah, it really doesn't matter!" He sighed, and dreamily poured some rice into his sizzling pan, "They're all beautiful and dear to my eyes..."

"Yeah sure" Dawn smirked, "Until Croagunk leaves you seeing stars that is." Ash gave out a muffled laugh, and tried to hide it with a gloved hand.

Brock raised an eyebrow, "Oh?" "Like how Pachirisu zaps you with discharge? Leaving** you **seeing stars?" Dawn narrowed her eyes in annoyance, already knowing where the conversation was heading. "Let's not forget what happens to your hair—"

"ALRIGHT! I get it, I'm sorry!"

"Alrighty then!" he tossed the rice around in the pan.

Ash reached for another chip, but only received left over salt. With a groan, he jumped up, and walked over to where everyone's bags were. Dawn glanced at him as he tossed his trash randomly into his backpack, and was still rummaging for any food. Unfortunately, there was only his clothes and wallet. He fell backwards colliding with grass again, and held his head in annoyance. Dawn laughed and shook her head. Ash ignored her. He was a lean guy with a big appetite. It wasn't his fault! Brock told him he would have to wait a little bit until the food was done, and his stomach gave a growl in response._ Stupid stomach. _Ash glowered, and watched all the Pokémon play upside-down.

"So birthday boy…." Ash didn't move, but listened, "After lunch we should head to a Pokémon center. Your mom is probably dying to hear from you."

"For sure!" Ash raised his hand blocking the rays of light that poured from a gap of clouds, "My mom would kill me if I didn't."

"Speaking of mothers, I should probably call mine too." Brock piped up in thought.

"Yeah, it would be nice to talk to my mom too." Dawn sighed and slumped in her seat, "She's probably wondering what my appeals will be for the next contest."

Ash yawned, and simply pushed out a _yep _from his lips. Today was his birthday and the others were more excited for it than him. It wasn't that he was happy to be a year older; it was just the fact that he wasn't the type of person who made a big fuss over it. The only time he was ever excited for his birthday was when he was 10, when he could finally become a Pokémon trainer. Ash grinned to himself, hiding his eyes with his arm. Those were one of the greatest years of his life. The thrill of adventure at every turn, defeating team rocket for the first time, befriending people on the way… it was amazing. He did that now also, but back then it different. It was fresh to him, new and bizarre. When he was little everything looked bigger than him, and he felt like it was his right to overgrow them. But years flew and he came to realize that not everything is bigger from what he remembered. He had finally grown up. In many ways he could say that he matured over the years, not only on choosing right decisions when it came to battling, but also in ways like he didn't just think about himself anymore. Now he cared for his friends needs, and always helped them out whenever they needed him. Ash yawned again, and felt something soft and furry next to his left arm.

"Hey Pikachu" He yawned again, and rolled over on his stomach to see his furry friend, "Are you done playing?"

The yellow mouse lowered its ears as it stretched its back, and happily replied, "Pika, Pi –_cha_!"

"Me too…probably because I'm dying of starvation." Ash scratched the back of his head.

Pikachu straightened up with its brown eyes widening with fear, "Pi-ka!"

"Kidding!" Ash laughed, and petted his friend on the head, "I was making a joke." Pikachu zapped him lightly in irritation, simply saying: _that's not funny at all! _Ash snapped his hand back, and yelped, "Sorry! I didn't mean to scare you!"

"Foods done!" The breeder announced happily.

Brock dumped some water over the flame, and took out three bowls from his bag. With one hand he held a bowl, and with the other he served. From hearing the spatula scraping the pan, Ash sprung up, and ran to the table, nearly tripping over his feet. Pikachu decided to lie on the floor where its trainer was, as that it was too tired to follow him. There was nothing better than Brock's amazing cooking! And what was even better was that he made one of Ash's favorite dishes. The tall breeder stretched, popping his back from kneeling for so long, and finally handed out everyone's food. Ash yelled a thank you for practically the whole world to hear, snatched a fork from Brock's hands, and dug in. After tasting the first bite on his tongue he could have died. The texture and flavor was like an explosion in his mouth! _So amazing! So delicious!_ Ash shoveled more food down his throat as Dawn, who sat beside him, stared grossed out. Brock laughed at her reaction, as he also ate a bite off his fork.

**_..._**

"Wow! That was delicious!" Ash smacked his lips, and patted his full belly.

The chef smiled, "Your welcome."

Brock was cleaning up his mess, as Dawn was helping him take down the table and chairs. When everything was folded up and ready to pack, Dawn held out a Poke trap, used for morphing large items into a small portable cube. It worked just like a poke ball, but did not require any of the hibernating or healing technology that would contain in a Pokémon's Poke ball. Dawn dropped the green cube to the ground, and watched as a bright flash of green rays absorbed the item's matter, and quickly suck it inside like a vacuum. With a delighted chime, and blue light indicating the stored tables and chairs, Dawn grabbed the cube from the ground, and threw it inside her bag. Ash was calling back his Pokémon into their poke balls, and safely secured them inside his belt. The others did the same, then snatched their backpacks from the ground, and placed them on their backs.

Pikachu leaped onto its trainer's shoulder, and nodded in thought of Ash's next motive, "Let's go."

…

"Sorry, all video phones are down right now… They won't be available until Monday morning."

The trio stood drenched in front of the pink haired Nurse Joy, as another clap of thunder rumbled outside. On their way to the Pokémon center it had started to rain, and when they finally arrived into town, thunder also invited itself to the party. After walking for two hours in the rain, cold and drenched from head to toe and finally arriving, they all got slapped in the face with a _sorry are video phones aren't working. _

"Ah man!" Ash groaned, and slumped over the receptionist's counter, "All of that for nothing."

"That's when you're wrong Ash!" The raven haired teen sulked, _oh god no… _Brock swayed his hands like some romantic fool off of a cheesy TV show, and out of nowhere had a rose in his hands. "I had journeyed through far lands, facing dangerous obstacles just to come and adore your loving face!" Now the helpless romantic clasped the woman's hands in his, "For I will do anything to retrieve a—"

A loud capsule noise came from the back pocket of Brock's pants, where a blue frog like Pokémon, sent a poison jab into his back. "— Painful, and horrible pain! _ACK!"_ The poison paralyzed him, sending him crashing to the tiles backwards. Pikachu who sat on Ash's shoulder sighed.

Nurse Joy blinked, and held a worried hand to her lips, "Is he going to be—"

"Just ignore him." The two younger friends assured her.

"A-are you sure?" The two stared at her seriously, and nodded. Nurse Joy sighed and leaned over the desk to whisper something to the two, "If you like, there's a private video phone you could use in the other room. Just don't tell anybody though okay?"

Dawn tilted her head, "Why are you letting us use it?"

Nurse joy glanced at the tan man on the ground, and back to the two kids, "You might want to get him some help."

Ash and Dawn thanked the woman, and headed in the direction of the where Nurse Joy said the phone was, with a Croagunk trailing along with its trainer. Dawn spotted the white video screen hanging in the far corner of the room, and they ran to it. Dawn touched the screen to see if she could get it to turn on, and in a blink of an eye, a welcome screen appeared with a blue rotating Pokémon symbol as the background. Dawn nodded to Ash confirming the digital keypad, allowing him to call as she ran back to wake up Brock. Ash quickly tapped in his mother's number, and read it back to himself. His finger drifted to the green symbol to the right corner, and confirmed the number. A picture popped up with a moving telephone jumping up and down. Ash drummed his fingers on the wall in impatience, and frowned when the answering machine picked up. The yellow Pikachu on his shoulder twitched its ears, also wondering the same thing as its trainer. Ash redialed the number again. _Maybe she's out shopping?_ This time the line was answered, and an image replaced the telephone animation. When he saw who answered the phone, he had to make sure he wasn't imagining it. His eyes glanced at the number and back to the woman.

"Mrs. Eclipse…?"

Margaret Eclipse was Delia's (Ash's mom) best friend, who used to help babysit Ash when he was younger. The last time he had ever seen the woman was on her wedding day, marrying to her husband Jason. Her eyes were bloodshot and puffy from crying, and her small frame shook from the heavy emotion that wracked inside her ribcage. The woman's skin held a vibrant olive tone, and her gray eyes and black pixie hair cut made her look so innocent and fragile. Ash blocked the screen from the eyes of his friends, and leaned closer to the screen. _Something's not right._ Margaret sniffed and turned away, whispering for her best friend to come and sit next to her. Ash waited for his mother to appear, and felt anxious to know what was going on. His mother walked into the shot, and whispered a hello to her son before sitting down.

"Mom" Ash glanced behind his shoulder and saw his friends talking to each other on a couch. "What going on?"

Pikachu's ears dropped, "Pi—ka…"

Delia inhaled deeply, and exhaled slowly. Her eyebrows furrowed, and her jaw clenched tightly behind her cheek, "Ash, I know you're in the middle of your Pokémon journey, but I _really _need you to come home."

Ash starred at her for a moment, and then slowly replied, "Why?"

She placed her head in her hands, and shook her head, "I-I need to tell you something, and it can't be said over the phone."

"What's going on?" Ash's tone sharpened and his friends noticed, growing quiet to listening into his conversation.

"I can't tell you why right now, but Ash" Delia straightened herself up again and asked desperately, "I _need_ you to come home."

Pikachu hopped off of its trainer's shoulder and ran to the group in hoping to distract them. Pikachu knew this was serious, and Ash needed to talk alone with his mother. Ash didn't bother to see where his best friend ran off to and remained glued to the screen in front of him. He couldn't believe it, before arriving he had expected to see his mother's smile, and casual bickering, but now… Now his mother looked like a completely different person.

Ash nervously glanced to his feet, "I don't know mom, your kind of scarring me right now. Just tell me what's the matter? Did something happen to professor Oak? Is everything okay at home—?"

"My husband was brutally murdered yesterday."

The words that were about to come out of his mouth vanished, and were replaced with nothing but shock. _What did she say? _Ash slowly trailed his eyes to Margaret, and found an unsettling sadness set deeply inside her eyes. "The people who killed Jason were actually after you. My husband took his life just to keep you safe. I can't tell you why, but I can tell you this." She wiped her eyes and growled her last request, "If you do not return to Kanto, my husband's death would be wasted on nothing."

Ash didn't know what to say. This was happening way too fast, and he felt as if the room was spinning. Jason was the closest thing to a father that Ash ever had, and to hear that he was suddenly gone was too much for the teen to handle. Ash leaned against the wall to support himself, as his chest began to tighten around his heart. _This can't be happening_. Margaret waited patiently for his answer, secretly crossing her fingers. Ash heard a creak from behind him, and looked over his shoulder. Dawn and Brock rose from their seats and were heading to see what was going on. Pikachu leaped back onto its trainer's shoulder, brushing him a solemn sorry. He couldn't let them see what was going on. He couldn't let them see his family like this. Ash's finger hovered over the end button and he starred seriously to the awaiting adults.

"I'll call you later with my answer."

He pushed End.

It took him a moment to realize that he was holding his breath, and he slowly exhaled. The tension in his chest trickled down through his bones, and he felt suddenly heavier. Pikachu sensed the boy's aura, and licked his cheek in a way to comfort him. Ash patted its head and silently thanked him. He could feel Brock's hand clasp his shoulder and his concern voice murmur in his ears. Dawn's wordless voice grazed his eardrums and the noise numbed his mind. What was he going to do? If he left, there would be no turning back. All that he longed for would be flushed down the drain. But he had to go. His family needed him.

"Ash answer me."

The teen blinked, shaking his head out of his thoughts, "I'm sorry, what did you ask?"

His bluenette friend repeated herself, "What did your mother say?"

Ash slumped against the wall and sighed, "My mother—" Brock and Dawn waited for him and the raven boy hesitated for a moment. He couldn't tell his friends about what was discussed; they would more than likely give him a hard time. Ash turned away from them and reluctantly lied, "She said happy birthday." _I wished._

Eh, so I _THOUGHT_ I would have them in the first chapter but, it just didn't felt right….. Um, but they'll meet I promise. As you can see the shipping is a slow process, but when the story roles along, it will be great! I want to thank you, the reader, you choosing to read this, and if you could, please review! I love feed back! :D

Until then, good bye!

-kimi


	4. Chapter 2: Crimson

Hello everyone! I'm back from a frustrating writers block, and I'm sorry it has taken this long to post up another chapter. But heres the great news! I have a new chapter for those who have been waiting! I also want to thank you SO SO SO MUCH to my reviewers! I have never gotten so many reviews on one chapter before, and I thank you all who have. It really makes my happy to know my story entertains you all and your feedback gets me going! So here is your reward! Another chapter of Anormaly!

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Chapter 2

Crimson

"This is Takashi Ryan reporting from base camp located in the Sinnoh region. As leader of squadrent two and representative of base camp five, I want to inform Elizabeth Crane, main leader of squadrent one that subject #012 has escaped from our lab. Last report of the subject was yesterday, at 3:25 AM. At 6:00 AM, we discovered the subject's absence. We believe that #012 is located around the Mt. Shady area or the Pokémon center close to there. Subject is described to be female, '5, 3', around the age 15, blue eyed and brunette. She is wearing the clothes we assigned to her so she should be easy to spot. Subject is not armed. Time is 3:10, reporting from Kai forest, I end this message."

The flat screen TV went black and an uproar of voices began to cross fire. Elizabeth grounded her teeth together as she glared at the screen. This was not what she wanted to hear. Her organization had to be perfect, organized, absolutely loop hole free, and a 15 year old had escaped her camps without a sweat. The women felt like ripping something apart and scream with anger, but she knew she couldn't act like that. Miss Crane slowly exhaled through her nostrils, moving her sight to her clenched fists. It was so stupid, sending a young child to a camp where she could hide. If she had sent the brat to a desert location she wouldn't have to chase her in the first place. After finding her (again) nearly two weeks ago, the girl was already able to escape her camp. What made matters worse was that this girl was the key to finding a person she had been hunting down lately. Elizabeth's fingernails were beginning to pierce into her own skin.

"Nobody escapes my camps." She growled. The red head straightened up in her seat and began to demand orders to her henchmen around her, "Listen up! We have a subject that thinks she can escape my camp without asking, so we have to track her down and put her in her place. Her registration number is #012, a class B individual, and possibly will be a tricky to catch." She scanned the faces of men as they gave her a slight nod to go on. She continued, "The girl is not armed with her Pokémon so you don't need to worry about her attacking you. I want her alive and arrived to me once you catch her. Do I make myself clear?"

All six cloaked men straighten up in their seats like boards, and shouted their answer, "Yes Master!"

The mighty leader grinned with red lips, and crossed her legs, "Pilot… you know where to go."

On her demand, the helicopter's blades sped faster and faster as the pilot redirected its coordinates. Elizabeth sat back and stared out the only window in the helicopter, down to the small patches of lands and cities. She once lived in such a place, with people and Pokémon like every other person, and she even had a family and a brother too. Elizabeth frowned and leaned against the metal frame. She had to admit that she missed her old life, but deep inside she knew that she could never return back to the way things were. The way her and her brother were. The thought of him made her shiver with a sense of anger and sadness, but faintly with an emotion of yearning. It wasn't her that made things the way they were. She never wanted to be a leader of a hunter society or an evil scientist, but life was just so unexpected that way. Elizabeth had always been dubbed as a good girl when she was younger, always the person with a head on her shoulders. Her brother was the one everyone worried about, not her. Then as she aged so did life and it seemed life was bored of the same old Eliza. On her 23rd birthday her brother had finally overcame as the 'troubled son'. He had gotten married, had children, and become more successful then what Elizabeth wished to be. At first she was happy for her brother's accomplishments. Her brother had accomplished being the first man to discover a rare chemical, ACH, which could make humans more advanced. She was happy for him, but that admiration soon turned into jealousy. A single strand of hate began to stretch as she became more aware of her true feeling towards her brother. He had given the chemicals out to a certain amount of people who helped him create it, and one of those people was not her. Five shots, to four people, and one was not his sister. When she had confronted him on why he had not given her one, he had responded that she would use it for a wrong reason. In a way she was right, but it didn't matter. She wanted it. He refused it.

_What's in the past is the past. I should be concentrating on finding this girl and looking for #001. _How she needed to find number 1. It was possibly the only way to bring things back to the way they were. Subject one was one of the most talented humanoid beings that ever lived. Being the subject of the person who was granted two shots, the man had dosed him/her twice which created him/her a Class A individual. Classes are based on an individual's ability. Class C, is only a stronger sense in smell or hearing, Class B, is both hearing, smelling, and also the ability to move faster, and finally Class A, is all the above with another _Unknown ability_. According to her brother's pages, The Class A's extra_ sense_ is described as not being connected to as a human sense like hearing, tasting or feeling, but a spiritual sense. According to one of his theories, people like mediums that can communicate with the dead, naturally have an offspring of chemical ACH implanted in their blood that allows them to do phenomenal things. But to a degree his theory is proven wrong due to the fact that mediums and people connected to the spiritual realm do not possess the ability to _**project. **_(A/N: projecting will be explained later in the story)

Elizabeth chewed on her bottom lip. The ground outside was growing nearer, snapping her out of train of thought. _That was fast…_ The woman rose from her seat, clinging onto the hanging hand bars, "Alright men, Do a full search and report back to me."

Ash pretended as if the conversation with his mother didn't happen. It remained in the back of his mind but he refused to allow it to go any further than that. All he wanted was to continue on with his birthday with his friends. However, Brock was busily stalking a Nurse Joy asking her questions about how to take care of a certain Pokémon of his, as Dawn had escaped to the bathroom, experimenting with her hair. That left Ash alone in his room with a mind full of questions and his family's situation. It wasn't like he worried about going back home but he couldn't bring himself to believe in it. The thought of Jason dead killed him inside, and abandoning his friends made it worse. There was no other choice, he had to go home but something about leaving bugged him. Not the halting his journey part, but as if once he left everything wouldn't be the same.

He closed his eyes and reopened them to the white ceiling. _How am I going to break the news to them? I can't just go up to them and say 'see ya guys I got to go back to Pallet!' _Frustrated, the teen growled at himself and stuffed his head into a pillow. Ash listened to the thrum of the heater and soft purring coming from a napping Pikachu by the beds edge. Delia's face flashed in Ash's mind and no matter how many times he tried to push it in the back of his head, the image came back again. Ash wasn't stupid, he knew his mother was hiding something from him, and whatever this secret was he knew he wouldn't like it. Ash squirmed with annoyance and confusion. _Why would mom want to keep something from me? She tells me everything... _With every breath his muscles tensed, and he swore his right eye was twitching. He never wanted to end up in some stupid situation that evolved secrets and trouble. He'd rather be outside battling a worthy opponent who was up to the challenge, not being cooped up in the Pokémon center. What made it worse was that he _couldn't_ go outside. It hadn't stopped raining.

Clenching the sides of the pillow, he pulled his head closer to it, and released all his stress into a muffled scream. The outburst nearly gave Pikachu a heart attack and Ash apologized for it. The yellow mouse yawned, stretched its lean back, and returned to his dream of bottled ketchup. It was expected of an electric type to fall asleep quickly on rainy days. The trainer sighed into the pillow one last time before he removed it from his face and plopped it over his head. For the next five minutes, he worked on regaining his calm, sometimes faltering when the thought about telling his friends about leaving, but he managed. Right when he was about to curse Arceus for not giving him a break, he heard a tap from the window.

It was such a faint tap, as if a pebble was thrown at it, but it still caught his attention. Ash rose slowly from his bed and went to the window. His hand brushed the white curtains aside, as he leaned his forehead against the glass. There was no one outside, just the side of a flower planter, the field, and a view of the city. Ash was about to leave when a rock the size of a golf ball smashed into the window directly in front of his face. It took the teen a second to notice the large crack branching out from the center of the impact, and he brushed his finger over the deranged glass, feeling water seep onto his finger. _That rock almost made a hole through the window. _Ash glanced up to finally see where the rocks were coming from and his eyes widened. Through the cracked window Ash could feel the wind and water spurt in as the blades from a soundless black helicopter hovered about thirty feet away from his window. The monster nearly took the roof of the Pokémon center, but thankfully it passed over and descended in the field. The power of the blades created a powerful wind that made the trees and bushes look like it were going through a hurricane.

"What's a helicopter doing here?" He knew for sure that this center didn't allow aircraft carriers to land in the area claimed by the Pokémon center. "Maybe it's dropping off supplies?" he guessed. The helicopter's side doors didn't have an advertisement or any logos, and neither did the tail. Just solid black.

The sliding doors opened revealing a group of black coated men and one person in white sitting in the back of them. In an organized manner, the group of men leaped out of the helicopter and lined up in an arrow position. The last to come out was a person in white, and another black coated man holding out an umbrella out to the bright figure. Ash squinted through the rain dripped window, trying to make out the face in the center. The white cloaked figure removed its hood, and accepted the umbrella that was handed out to her. He swore he was witnessing an overgrown doll come to life. The woman was lean and tall, with rosy cheeks and porcelain like skin. Her eyes were a unique shade of gold, as her lips and cropped hair were a deep crimson. She reminded him of a flower.

"Like a red azalea…" Ash whispered, seeming to be absorbed by the woman's unique appearance. He wondered if maybe she was a famous coordinator or trainer, and those men were her body guards. It seemed to fit. The helicopter, the men, her appearance… "I gotta find out!" Ash adjusted his hat and turned away from the window to make his way for the door. As he passed Pikachu, he whispered enough for the Pokémon to hear where he was going, "I'll be in the lobby okay buddy?"

Pikachu answered drowsily, "Pi…"

Ash smiled to the yellow mouse, and ran out the door. This was just what he needed, a distraction from all this drama in his head. What was even greater was he was going to meet a famous trainer/coordinator! Ash picked up his pace through the white hallways, almost knocking into a man with a Gardivor, and rounded the corner to finally step into the lobby, and find the woman in white standing in front of the receptionist desk.

Elizabeth smiled politely to the pink haired woman, "Hello, I'm looking for my niece who I think may be staying in this Pokémon Center. Do you think you can locate her for me?" Ash hid behind a plant while listening to the tall woman talk. Even her voice seemed very peaceful like.

"Oh yes! May I have the name of you niece Miss?" Nurse Joy propped her fingers on her keyboard.

"Her last name is Maple" Ash's eyes widened, "She might have signed in last night or early this morning."

Ash felt a feeling begin to twist in stomach, recognizing the last name. There was only one person he knew with the name, but the girl didn't have an aunt. Ash felt someone staring at him, which made him look left to see two of her men glaring at him. The trainer sheepishly smiled and hid behind the entry wall. He could still be able to hear their conversation. He wanted to know if the Maple the woman was talking about was his friend. Nurse Joy continued to type feverishly on her computer, as the Red headed woman patiently waited. _It's a shame Brock isn't here to see this lady, he'd be all over her. _Ash blinked, and puzzled over why he's _wasn't_ here. Where was Brock?

"Lets see…" The Joy gave her finger a tap on the screen, reading over her log in. She returned to her awaiting guest, "Yes, Miss Maple is currently staying in Room 17. I'll go right ahead and—"

Elizabeth held a hand as she walked away, "That won't be necessary."

The Joy leaped out her seat with an extended hand, yelling after her, "Wait! You can't enter her room without registering—" She was cut off by a glare by the woman. Nurse joy swallowed her nerves and went around the desk to stand in front of her, "If you like, you can sit down with some tea or coffee as I get her."

Elizabeth looked over her and grinned, "You're a committed employee to be sticking up to your own customers like that." Ash tensed from her comment but reframed from moving from his spot. With another look over the small nurse, she grinned, and turned on her heels giggling, "If you can retrieve her in less than five minutes, I'll wait." The tall woman sat between the two cloaked men the visitor couch, and cocked her head to the shocked Nurse, "I'm counting…"

The joy stood in the middle of the lobby dumbfounded. The red head seemed amused by her expression and only smirked at the Nurse's stupidity. Joy narrowed her eyes, nodded, and headed for the girl's room. Ash clenched his jaw from overhearing the discussion with the two ladies. This woman was a jerk. He couldn't stand people like her, especially when they treat people like crap. Ash stepped in front of the walking Joy, forcing a smile, "Excuse me, Nurse Joy?"

"Yes?" she sounded extremely shaken.

Ash glanced over her shoulder to the two men and the lady then back to her. "Who is renting Room 17?" The Joy raised a pink eyebrow. Ash laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head, "I think my friend is staying in there but I'm not sure. Her last name is Maple, do you know if the Maple renting the Room is May Maple?"

The nurse just stared at him, biting her lip. Ash was begging to think asking her wasn't the greatest idea. It must have been a different person who happened to have the same last name. As Ash was about to tell her to forget he asked anything, the nurse grabbed his wrist and started tugging him through the  
hallway. The Joy whispered for only him to hear, "If you want to see her then come with me, but please make it quick, her aunt wants to speak with her." Ash's eyes widened and he reversed the pulling from her to him. "Wait slow down!"

Ash dragged the Joy behind him as he sped and dodged bystanders, "You only got five minutes! I want to talk to her and I won't have time if we're going this slow!"

Joy nodded and matched his speed, gliding through the thin space, and scanning door numbers. Ash's heart was beating with every step, and his breathing quickened on the thought of seeing May again. He hadn't talked or seen year in a year, and he wanted to know what happened during their period apart. Had she gotten better at coordinating? Or has she met new people? At times like these he really wished he knew where Brock and Dawn were. They would have liked to see her. He felt Nurse Joy's hand slip from his as she retrieved a door card from her apron, and extended out to the last door in the hall. Ash slowed to a stop, feeling his insides churn in excitement and nerves.

Nurse Joy slid the card in the slot, waiting for the lock to release, and slowly cracked the door. "May? This is Nurse Joy, may I come in?" First no one responded, but then a hoarse voice gave her permission, "There's someone here to see you too… may he come in as well?" The girl's voice asked who it was and Nurse Joy turned to the boy, "What's your name?"

"Ash."

Nurse joy didn't have to repeat herself, as the door swung open with a bang, with a brunette standing under the doorway. Ash could only stare at her. May only gave him a glance before returning back to Nurse Joy, "May I have a moment with him?"

"Well, um, actually your Aunt is here to see you, and she gave me only five minutes to come get you—"

May pulled the boy in her room anyway, and smiled to the Nurse, "Tell that fake Aunt I don't feel like seeing her today." Joy tried to remind her she had five minutes but only got a door in her face. The joy frowned and slowly walked away.

The door hinge clicked shut as May pressed her forehead against the blue door, refusing to look up at the confused teen behind her. Ash couldn't bring himself to talk. Looking at May in a way he'd never seen her before took all words from under his tongue. The May he remembered was always smiling, dressed in red and had bright sapphire eyes. This girl… was like a stranger to him. She wore a dirty black jumpsuit with white faded numbers over her chest, her brunette hair looked burned on the ends, and her eyes… he saw so much pain in them.

Ash preceded a step with a hand extended to comfort her, "May… what—" May rammed into him with a big hug, nuzzling her face into his chest as she began to weep. Ash stumbled backwards to gain his balance, as his friend continued to cry into his vest. Her fame was shaking, and her sobs grew quicker and heavier. "H-Hey what's wrong? Why are you crying?" She shook her head and brought her face closer into his chest. Ash grabbed her by the shoulders and took a step back, voice trembling with worry, "May, your scaring me, what's going on?"

Another sob escaped from her lips, before she managed to answer his question, "I-It's nice to see someone familiar again." Ash stared at her, wanting her to explain more. "It's been five months since I've seen anyone, and I guess" she sniffled, "I'm glad to see you one last time." Ash furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. _One last time? _

She tensed under his hold, and froze with sudden fear. Ash gave her a nudge, "What's wrong?" May's eyes went out of focus for a second and her skin turned completely pale. "May?"

**"Move!"**

May gave a push that sent Ash stumbling against the wall, as May whipped around into a stance at the same time the door and piece of the wall came crumbling down. Ash coughed from the rubble smoke and squinted through the think fog. May remained in a fighting stance, guarding the boy behind her. She wasn't going down without a fight. Ash rose to his feet and ran to stand by her side despite her yells to stay back. The smoke cleared up, and a person that Ash hadn't expected on seeing slowly advanced into the room. May growled at the sight of the Crimson haired woman.

"There you are my troublesome mutt."

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Well there you go! May is finally introduced in the story, and the story really begins! I hope you liked this chapter and please let me know of any mistakes or errors. Review if you can, and thank you again for reading!

-kimi


	5. Chapter 3: Crossfire

Hello again my lovely readers! :D

I'm real sorry for the delay, but here is the next chapter you have been awaiting! And please, enjoy the advanceshipping :)

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Chapter 3

Crossfire

Everything burned…

The growing flames slowly ate away the room's pale yellow walls, devouring fallen wood, and picture frames. Sparks and amber crumbled away from the edges of the ablazed wall, spiraling to the ground, burning holes in the deep blue carpet. With every inhale, the two teens swallowed clouds of thick smoke. With every ticking moment that passed, the space around them grew tighter, and the air became hotter. The raven boy clenched his throat as if it would help ease the burning, but continued to cough harshly. Even as he suffered under the thick cloud of smoke, he still couldn't help but feel visually captivated by the orange-red flutters the fire preformed.

Ash exhaled, frowned, and cleared his throat. _Why would I be interested in something that could kill me? _The trainer never knew why he was so attracted to the sight of fire, or why he thought of it as being something interesting to even to _look at_, but he just did. During his deep thought, May had been tugging on his arm to grab his attention. Ash snapped away from his thoughts and turned to the girl next to him.

"Ash you have to leave." She whispered eagerly to him.

"How about you? You're not planning on staying alone here are you?" Her head bowed as her hand slid away from his arm, returning back to her sides. May didn't say anything but Ash knew her answer. Ash noticed her fingers tremble and her shoulders shake. Ash reached to caress her shoulder in a way to comfort her, "May?" She jerked her shoulder away from his touch, holding her glare to the carpet. His hand floated in mid air for a second and then returned to his sides. Someone from across the room directed orders, catching his attention.

Seeping through the blasted wall came six dark cloaked men with draped hoods shadowing their eyes. They moved with perfected grace and intimidating strides, giving the illusion of floating in mid air. Ash read every individual as they entered. These men were menacing looking and reminded him of Darkari's shadow in his nightmare in Crown city. They appeared very loyal to their leader and Ash knew that was a problem. It meant they wouldn't hold back if ordered to attack. Ash made it to the very last person. His brown eyes narrowed as the woman in white made her way through the room. The sight of her shocked him yet confused him. This was the last person he'd expect to see walk inside a wall of fire. Ash had seen this lady exit the helicopter. She was the rude woman in the lobby and now the evil grinning woman standing before him. She gave off a dark aura in which he could feel raise the hairs on his arms. Ash furrowed his eyebrows .This woman was twisted and dangerous. May stirred uncomfortably next to him.

Elizabeth's ruby lips curved as she witnessed the scene proclaimed in front of her. She hadn't expected to see anyone else but her runaway victim, yet here was a young boy at her aid. The lean boy with the zigzag freckles looked like he could have been older by a year or two, and obviously was a Pokémon trainer by his attire. He side stepped closer to the brunette to stand at an angle, so his body hid the view of her. _Why would he want to protect this monster? _Elizabeth's eyebrow raised a little. _Maybe he doesn't know about her abilities… _The boy's brown eyes bore into her gold ones, sending an electric shock to flow through her. She gasped and diverted her eyes. She blinked, realizing that she experienced this feeling before with someone else. It was odd for her to remember _him_. Elizabeth lifted her eyes again to the trainer and found why she remembered. Inside his light brown irises she felt warmth and determination, the same a friend of hers had long ago. But she hadn't seen him in nearly 15 years, and she didn't even know if he was still alive. The man vanished without a goodbye.

Ash started to feel uncomfortable under the woman's gaze. With her round puzzled eyes and slightly furrowed eyebrows, it was like she was studying him. The red head exposed her smile, slowly cocking her head to one side. Ash didn't like this person, he didn't like the way she looked at him.

"Ahh… Aren't reunions so touching?" Both teens flinched from the sound of her voice. It flowed in a pitch like silk, the type of tone that didn't fit her dark appearance. Elizabeth raised her stiletto to step over a burning portrait of Sinnoh and made her way to them. The red head gestured her hand to the brunette, "Aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?" May pressed her lips tightly, her eyes watching the woman cautiously. Elizabeth passed another burning picture, walking over to the white sheeted bed. With a gloved hand she dusted the surface. "Oh don't be like that Hun" she winked and sat on the edge, "How'd you get a hold of a cutie like this." Ash winced uncomfortably. _Who is this person?_ Elizabeth simply just shrugged her shoulders and leaned back on her arms, "Alright then, I guess you're not going to talk."

A husky grunt invaded the conversation, catching the golden eyed leader's attention. "Excuse me" The tallest man in Elizabeth's line stepped forward while two other men joined his flank, "We are currently attracting a crowd in the hallway, do you wish for us to force them away from the area?" In the pause of silence, sure enough soft murmurs were being traveled from the halls.

May's eyes widened and she lured to take a step but was stopped by Ash's arm extended out in her way. "They're going to hurt them!" she whispered terrified.

Ash shook his head to her, "I know. But we can't stop them." His jaw flexed as he retreated her gaze, "Even if we decide to do something it would be pointless. We're out numbered and they could hurt us." May lowered her eyes and bit her lip.

The guards waited patiently as she thought it over. Finally, she smiled to the tall being, and gave them her permission. The three men bowed, "We will return if you need help."

She guffawed, "I don't think it will come to that." With that said the front man rose, turned, and sped out of the room, along with the two people behind him.

Elizabeth clapped her hands with a smile, "Well! While I'm waiting for the crowd to die down in the hallway, I might as well waste my time to get to know my subject's friend." She twisted her body around to set her knees on the mattress, using them to crawl over to the closed window near the head of the bed. She forced it open with little trouble and poked her head out of the pane. Ash and May stared at her with envy as she inhaled a gulp of clean air. Without looking to the trainer she spoke softly to him, "So what's your name boy?"

Ash moved his weight to his left leg and gruffly answered her, "Ash" He felt May's stare on him. "And yours?"

A breeze from outside briskly lifted some strands of her red hair away from her face and cooled her down from being stuck in such a hot room. She closed her eyes, "Elizabeth"

"What do you want from us?" his question was more demanding.

"What I want…" she tested the words on her tongue and lazily swung her head away from Ash's view. Her pitch turned sour, "What I want is my _dog_ back."

"Dog?"

"Her." Elizabeth rotated her head back to them, her eyes settled on the girl. May glared back at her, insulted. Elizabeth shook her head, "She's been a bad dog. Running away from her master and disobeying orders…" Elizabeth leaned against the window pain and grinned at the blue eyed girl, "Don't you know what happens to dogs when they don't listen to their owner?"

May laughed halfheartedly, "Do you know what happens to an owner when they get on a dog's bad side?" Elizabeth smile began to stretch across her lips humor spreading through her eyes. May tilted her chin up, "They get bit."

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow, "Do they really?"

May was still smiling, "I know my owner will if she decides to try."

Elizabeth removed herself from the window and scooted to the foot of the bed. She chuckled to herself and gave an annoyed smile. _A feisty little brat isn't she? _She batted her eyelashes and cracked her neck, "You really think you have a chance against me? I have you cornered, you have nowhere to go, no Pokémon to battle me with..." May scanned around her and gritted her teeth. There was no way out. Her men blocked the entrance to the hallway and the window was certainly no help. It was too small. "Why not just give up now?" May's lip slightly curled from the sound of her voice.

"You can't make me go back there!" she closed her eyes, "Its** Hell**!"

"That place was made just for you." She tilted her jaw and took a step forward, "A bad place for a bad dog."

"I'm nobody's dog." She snapped back.

Ash felt completely in the middle of a confusing battlefield. _What are they talking about? What place? _Ash mentally screamed, _what the hell is going on! _As the two girls continued to rant at each other something caught his eye. Elizabeth's right hand slid from her side and into her coat pocket, where inside her hands curled over an object. Ash knew what she was retrieving for and reached for his belt that held his poke balls…only to remember that they weren't with him. Ash cussed at his own stupidity, suddenly knowing now that his chances of escaping were slim. Ash glanced to May seeing that she didn't have any of her Pokémon either. Pikachu was in his room too… The boy exhaled tensely, _I hope he's okay… _

Elizabeth held a poke ball in her hand, rotating it playfully in her palm. "Just give up and come with me. That's the smartest decision."

Ash growled, slightly pushing May behind him, "What do you want with her!"

The red head blinked at him, slightly forgetting he was here in the room. She scowled at him, "That information doesn't concern you." Ash narrowed his eyes, feeling his anger flowing through his chest and down his arms. The crimson lady's voice rose with annoyance, "Actually I don't understand why your still here! Why don't you run along and leave us be—"

Ash energetically step forward with hands clenched behind him, "I'm not leaving her here with you!"

May stiffened. This was her fight not his, "Ash, you can't—"

"I'm not leaving you." Ash stared down at her with a heavy mask that meant he was serious. May froze. His words had struck her so hard that she felt her eyes begin to water. It had been so long since someone stood up for her. Ash returned to the dumbfounded adult, "Especially not with a person who _wants_ to hurt you!"

Elizabeth gave out a vulgar growl that sent a tremor through their bodies, "You don't understand about anything that's going on!" She stabbed a finger in May's direction, "That girl isn't human! She's dangerous and needs to be tamed!"

This threw him off. _What? _He glanced again to May, seeing her suddenly growing stiff under his gaze. He didn't get it. She looked human and acted like any normal person. He returned to the enemy and gritted his teeth. _I know better than to listen to a criminal. _Ash shook his head and yelled back at her, "You're wrong!"

"Are you blind? You're being lied to by what you call a friend! She's hiding her true self from you."

"I don't care!" Ash's neck and ears burned with anger, and he inhaled more toxic air then before, "All I know is that May's my friend and that's my reason I'm protecting her."

May could only watch. Her best friend was defending her in front of the most dangerous person in the world. It hadn't occurred to her that he cared for her to a point that he would put himself in front of a person who killed for a living. Though, he was the type of person who _would _do such a risky task to protect anyone. She remembered a time when she traveled with him to the tree of beginning, when they camped outside with Lucario and Kid. That was the place where Ash told the group the story about how him and Pikachu became best friends. Ash had used himself as a shield to protect Pikachu from a flock of sparrows when the electric type could not fight back. Even for the sake of his Pokémon he'd put himself in danger. Thankfully at the last minute Pikachu leaped off his shoulder and zapped the enemy away. May's hand fluttered to her heart as she winced in confusion. She was experiencing an unknown stir beginning to bubble inside her chest, unable to recall why. Her sapphire eyes tacked onto the back of her friend's. She had never met anyone so warm and courageous.

Sweat rolled down the side of Ash's face as the scorching room seemed to close in on them. His heart sped twice as fast then his normal pace and his chest felt heavy. Ash stood there, waiting for this woman to throw the poke ball in her hand. His jaw flexed as she rotated the half colored sphere in the position to activate it, her pale finger hovered over it, and then moved away as her eyes focused over his shoulder. Ash followed her gaze. May slightly advanced around him and walked towards Elizabeth. From the corner of his eye he caught the cloaked men hesitating to stop the girl, but was told to stay put by the hand of their leader. Ash didn't know if he should either stay put or pull her back, but before he could decide, May spoke.

"Listen" she sighed and shrugged her shoulders, "I'm going to say this once in a civil manor, then after I'm going to walk right out of here." Elizabeth's expression darkened from hearing the last part and her stance appeared to no longer be calmed, "I'm not sure what this 'project' that you're investing in is all about, but it isn't going to get you anywhere. I watched two kids who you've practically murdered over something that wasn't worth dying for. Now you're after me because you want to find more information about—" May paused to depict a word that was suitable for her predicament, "I'm not sure...a disease? Is worthless, I'm not what you're looking for. I don't even think I have the same sickness as those kids." A shudder went down from the crown of her head to the soles of her feet. The twins who she met by chance while staying in the camp were the kids who helped her escape. And in the process they were killed because of her.

Elizabeth huffed cholerically and folded her arms against her chest. "I'm not researching and using you to find a cure you idiot, I'm just a recruiter." Ash and May's eyes widened, "What you call a disease is not even close to what you're diagnosed with. There is a chemical in your body that was injected into you at birth that activates 5% more brain capacity. A normal human will only use 10% of its brain in one lifetime, while _you_ can access a total of 15%."

"So you want her because she's smarter than the average person?" Ash blurted.

Her golden eyes rolled in a perfect circle as she ignored his idiotic question, "Scientists have made a cover up story that the chemical is used as an enhancer for progressive learning when really they have no idea what they're talking about. The 5% isn't used in _that_ part of the brain, it's actually located in a tiny part of your nervous system and where your senses are stored."

Both teens blinked, "Senses?"

She groaned, "What are you two stupid or something? You know, hearing, tasting, seeing, smelling?" The two nodded on understanding. Elizabeth blew a strand of her hair out of her face, "Anyways, what I'm getting at is that I need this mutt because the 5% boosts up her senses, which means she runs faster, reacts faster, sees farther. She is the perfect super solider."

Hearing all the facts and trying to click it together with May was just strange. Ash had spent a year with this girl and he hadn't seen her so called 5% in action. She was just a normal girl. Ash shook his head in disbelief, "I can't—this is just too weird."

She sighed, "I guess I have no choice but to give you proof." Elizabeth punched the button in the center of her poke ball and cackled, "Let's show him shall we!"

With a flick of her wrist Elizabeth tossed the red and white ball into the air, where it unlatched loudly, and a ray of red slithered out of it. May backed away from the generating red figure, bumping her back into Ash's chest. In the second they met eyes, they found fear in each other's expression. They knew this was going to end badly. The red figure paused, and then a series of robotic beeps came from it, shattering the crimson skin around it, revealing the Ice type. May swallowed loudly while gazing at the large creature. Floating about two inches from the ground, mounted a large body of crystal. Being made out of a freezing solid, the scorching heat inside the room made thin fog to roll off of its icy skin. The Ice type's seven dotted eyes flashed in it's "+" position, as its robotic voice echoed in the small room.

" REGICE!"

Elizabeth laughed darkly and pointed to the Pokémon's targets, "Regice, use zap cannon!"

Three things happened in that 10 seconds of what was going to be their last. One, the ice type's hand movements danced in a circular fluid movement, as a spark of electricity began to develop in the center of its palms, beautifully morphing it into an electrically charged orb ready to set fire. Two, the boy standing beside the frozen girl shoved her out of the way of the Pokémon's aim, while slowly accepting that he had no time to get himself out of the way. Three, the second his brown eyes returned to the Pokémon, he was greeted by a spiraling yellow ball of death.

"ASH!" May scrambled forward, pushing herself with all her might off of the dark carpet, as she hurled herself at her best friend. Her fingers gripped onto the lose cloth of his black vest as she stuffed her face into his shoulder blade, in mid-air waiting for the blast to take them both.

An ear bleeding explosion echoed through the room and carried out of the hallways as the powerful attack hit the wall behind where the two teens once stood. The Pokémon's blow created a powerful wind, popping the glass out of the window by the bed and blowing out the fires that were eating away the room. Ash and May found themselves skidding across the rugged carpet, luckily dodging the explosive ball of lightning, as their arms and the sides of their faces burned from being slashed from the carpet. May's grip of Ash's vest was lost, as she was rolled to a stop on the rugged ground while he was the unlucky one to have his back slammed against the dresser leaning against the opposite wall. May groaned, coughing under the thick cloud of plaster and smoke. Squinting through her sapphire eyes they dilated and blurred as she tried to raise her head to search for her friend. Under the thick cloud and thin air everything made it more difficult to find him. In between coughing she called out to him, earning only a pained 'May' in return. May could feel her hands tingle as the nerves in her palms buzzed from being burned by the carpet. Another set of coughing fits and crawling she found him and gasped in horror. His hat wasn't on, which revealed a large gash down his right temple, a thick flow of red seeping out of the wound. May swallowed the urge to faint and leaned over him, trying to get another response from him.

Elizabeth went into hysterics on listening to the pleas coming from her dog, "We'll looks like I missed!" May's eyes watered as she tried to ignore the evil woman and continued to focus on the boy in front of her, "How pitiful." Elizabeth grinned deviously, "Concerning over a boy whose race is less superior then you. It's so sad."

Tears were now dripping down her heated cheeks as her hands trembled with hatred. Her words had struck her right through the heart. She blinked through the blur of tears as she bowed her head, shaking uncontrollably. Why were there such evil people in this world? Why did they have to exist? "W-why?" her lips pushed the word above a whisper. Why wasn't there an answer to her question?

'Why' seemed to be the highlight question of her life. In a matter of months her life had turned completely upside down and for what? May knitted her eyebrows together and gritted her teeth. Again, _why _did it have to be her? She wished she had the answers, she wished for someone to take her away from all this chaos. A tear splashed on her hand. She desired to have a normal life again. As she closed her eyes, she listened to the loud voices of what she assumed to be the guards out in the hallways. They were yelling... she listened harder. _Why do they sound so close? _

Ash grunted abruptly, making the hairs on the back of May's neck to rise on their ends. May wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, while lifting her head up to meet an unexpected smile. She stared at the raven boy kneeling next to her with awe, as she kept disbelieving that the smile on his blood stained face was real. Elizabeth had stopped laughing, as she also stared at the slowly rising young man. His left hand clenched tightly onto his right shoulder, as he used his uninjured arm to lift himself up, using the dresser to keep him stable. The blood that trickled down his temple wrapped under his chin, dripping onto the collar of his shirt. May couldn't believe what she was seeing. _How can he be smiling like that? _He was beaming as if he was claimed a Pokémon Master. The dust cloud from before had cleared up and the room looked more devastating then before. The Regice left a big hole through the room next door and glass from the window sheeted the bed and ground.

Elizabeth's irises shrunk as she felt suddenly threatened, "What are you grinning about."

Ash's bright smile lingered, "I win."

"What are you talking about? You're bleeding with possibly a shattered shoulder, I don't see a victory." Ash chuckled and nodded his head over her shoulder.

Elizabeth furrowed her eyebrows and slightly tilted her head to the door. There was a lot of commotion going on outside, and she could depict her guards yelling for back up. Her eyes widened. _How—_

"**Use Brick Break!"**

* * *

HOLY CRAP. That's all I had to say while writing this chapter. I took in some advice from my reviewers and tried my best to capture the scene with as much vivid detail as I could, and man was it fun to do! I kind of struggled on exactly how to write the chapter so that's why this has been updated a little late. Sorry about that. ^. ^;; anyways I tried to extend it a little farther but I thought I would stop here :) So please, tell me what you think! Tell me what you thinks going to happen or if there are any errors. I love to hear what you guys think! So I'm off to work on the next chapter so until next time, bye!

-kimi3


	6. Chapter 4: Run

The next chapter :3

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Chapter 4

Run

January 15th: 9:58 PM [Kanto Region: Location-Serene Underground Warehouse] _(3,650 days until __retribution)_

It's been 5 years.

He missed the sound of her voice, the sight of her smile, her warm presence that always lifted him up on cloud nine. Even after these five passing years, he still thought about his 'to be wife'. Every ticking second she remained in his mind. Often he would replay memories of him and her cooking together in the kitchen, or them walking by the beach where they first met. Other times he pretended she was with him, and he would talk to the image in his mind for hours. People could call him crazy all they want; as long as he didn't feel alone he couldn't care less. However, the imaginary Delia wasn't enough for him. Aaron wanted to be back with the real one.

The white light that trailed along the pale walls inside Aaron's cell illuminated the space around him. The young man sat on the cemented ground, his hands at his sides, while he stared out of a slender window that overlooked 23 stories below. It was rather rare on nights to see the moon from his window, because his cell always faced away from it, and the moonlight reminded him of the first time entering that abandoned warehouse back in Kanto. The moon's radiance loomed over him with a sense of peace, as its pearly face smiled down at him. Aaron smiled back at it and decided to lie down. His shoulder pressed against the hard cement, and Aaron absentmindedly raised a hand to block out the moon's face, its rays poring through the cracks of his fingers. Aaron laughed, playing with the light on his pale hand. Continuing, Aaron pressed his ear to the ground and smiled gapingly at the moon.

Tiny vibrations brushed against his eardrum as the faint noise paused and beated within the next second continuously. Aaron's hand halted in midair, as he listened more intently to the noise. He recognized it as shoes walking atop the tiled floors just outside his bolted door. Deciding to ignore whoever was coming to meet him, Aaron breathed through his nose, placed his raised hand on the ground, and closed his eyes. The floor felt cold and smooth underneath his fingertips and the winter air sent goose bumps to trail up his arms. He focused on the sound of his own breathing, noting how shaky and hollow it was from nerves. Yes, he was nervous, scared even. Aaron's '_doctor'_ told him that for this evening, he would be used for a presentation to help introduce an invention that was recently discovered a week ago. It was likely to tribute towards the ultimate super-race his ex-collage often blabbered about.

Aaron opened his eyes to the moon and tucked his legs under his chin. A shiver passed through him, waking up the inner power that was currently in its slumber. The raven haired man forced a smile onto his lips, "Had a nice sleep?" The unknown being that resided inside him pulsed, creating a calm mood to wash over the man.

Aaron had treated his ability more of a friend other than a _thing _that lived inside him. He carried on his years locked up in his facility to get a better understanding of his ability, and created a system of communication between it. The communication between them was usually used through the change of mood that the power seemed to give off, and its thoughts would randomly play out in splashes of colors behind Aaron's eyes. The bright colors like yellow, orange and red where used to express high energy or happiness, as the darker colors expressed calmness, sadness, or if it was tired. There were other colors that Aaron could not figure out, but was determine to crack the code. The concept of it all sounded completely insane, but it didn't matter if it meant not being alone.

Aaron cocked his head to the bolted door, listening to the faint taps that echoed out in the hall way. The power inside him fluttered and showed various colors of green. It was curious. Aaron ignored it and used the wall behind him to stand and walk over to the bolted door to get a better listen. He touched the rusted metal and leaned over it to press an ear against it. Footsteps and a particular clack of a woman's heel could loudly be depicted, giving Aaron a heads up that it was time to be heading for the operating room. Taking a few steps back, the man glared at that door, waiting for the locks to creak opened. Half a minute later, a halt of movement came from outside his door, and the jingle of keys chimed as the locks tuned one by one. The heavy door creaked open with a man proceeding through the opening, his eyes landing on the awaiting patient. Behind him, two bulky men proceeded without any question, and walked up to the raven haired man. They harshly forced his arms behind his back and cuffed them with a thick bracelet. Aaron didn't give any of the doctors the respect of his attention, and kept his eyes to the ground.

"Mr. Ketchum" the man had a smile in his voice that Aaron didn't like, "Today is truly something to celebrate! Thanks to you, we have reached a step closer to reaching our goal." The blonde strolled up to his ex-partner and reached out to pat him on the shoulder. Aaron glared at him. "So I had a thought that suddenly popped in my head. Why not celebrate with the person who made this all possible?" Daniel nodded his head over his shoulder as he invited one of the coated colleagues hiding in the hallway to come over, "Lizzy, I want you to meet the man who will be demonstrating your discovery."

Upon hearing the familiar name Aaron's eyes snapped up to the one person he had not anticipated to see. A young woman made her way through the crowd of men blocking the entry, her golden eyes finding his brown ones. Her eyes widened upon figuring out who her assigned patient was, stopping dead center of the small cell. Aaron couldn't bring himself to speak the words that formed in his head upon seeing his childhood friend just a few feet away.

Daniel smiled to the young woman and reached for her hand, "What are you so surprised about, Elizabeth? Who did you think I was talking about?" The girl glanced between her brother and the torn man that stared at her. Daniel chuckled, "Surely this wont interfere with you presentation?"

"N-no." Elizabeth straightened herself and turned on her heels, "I assure you this man has no affect on me." With that said and done, she hurried herself out the door without another look back.

Daniel grinned and turned to the guards holding Aaron, "It's time to head to the operating room, so cover his eyes, and follow the group." With a _yes sir_, one of the guards faced Aaron, carrying a thick bag in his hand. Before Aaron could take another look at the man in white, his sight was taken away by pitch blackness.

...

Something inside Aaron shattered as the world around him spun. A horrible pain branched out from the core of his stomach and the back of his head, quickly spiking painfully in waves of discomfort. Pressing his forehead closer to the splattered floor, a sudden deafening mixture of sounds began to ring loudly in his ears, and the energy that flowed through him began to pulse. The pain was excruciating, like his blood underneath his skin was suddenly replaced with poison or mercury. Aaron brought a fist against the tile as he screamed in agony. Somewhere within the room someone noted his reaction and started to write it down on paper. His forehead rolled over the hard surface of the ground and his eyes strolled upwards to glare at the white coated men and woman surrounding him like an exhibit, all noses glued to their notebooks as they examined his pain. He couldn't understand why they just stood there and watched him like this. It was cruel.

A woman from the group took a step towards him and bent down to be at his eye level. He recognized her cropped red hair that sat on her shoulders, and round, golden eyes, making him cringe from the sight of her.

"Notice how the subject reacts to the serum." She states, "In a normal case scenario, he'd already be dead, but due to the chemical that is embedded in his blood and system, in only a matter of minutes the poison is completely washed out from his system." A low mumble came from the group as she turned to the panting man on the ground, and touched the side of his moist neck, "His heart rate has returned to its normal pace and he is slowly returning back to his original state." Returning her hand she rose and demanded the men standing on the opposite side of her to pick up Aaron off of the floor.

"So from what we can gain from this presentation is that if we can manipulate this chemical, we can generate a race where it is impossible to poison or kill individuals using injections."

Aaron's face twisted in disgust as the group began to clap for her. Hearing someone approaching him, Aaron prepared himself as two large hands gripped him by his arms, lifting him up and directing him back onto the metal table where he had been experimented on. Aaron thrashed against the men's hold, ignoring the pain still formed in his core, and yelled for his release. Many of the people in the room ignored him and filed out of the compacted space. The stranger slammed him onto the cold table demanding him to stay calm as nurses nearby began to strap him in. As he felt the leather straps tightly coil around his ankles Aaron panicked and flopped on the table, yelling again for the man to release him. They all ignored him and he was successfully strapped in.

The woman from before approached him again with a devilish smile, "Great work today Aaron, you put on quite a show." He huffed and continued to fight against the leather straps. She laughed and tenderly reached out to touch the side of his face, "You're still the same. Even when we were kids you were always such a spark."

"Shut up!" Aaron jerked his head away from her and growled, "Don't talk to me like you're my friend!"

"That hurts you know that?" she giggled and leaned against the side of the metal cot, "Weren't you the one who wanted to be _my_ friend?"

"That was before you became like you brother" Aaron gave up on the straps and laid there panting, "Before you decided to use me."

"It's only for a little while and my brother promised that he'd release you." She paused and lowered her eyes, "Why do you insist on resisting us? Your helping us improve the better of humanity—"

"Humanity my ass" Aaron's head rolled so he could look at the girl, "Using the thing that's inside me to produce an unbeatable army, yeah that will surely save everyone. Do you realize what will happen if anyone were to get even the smallest amount of what's flowing through my blood?" He waited for her to answer but she didn't. "That person wouldn't even be able to control it. You have to be born with an ability like mine. This isn't some kind of magical serum shit that you see in the movies that suddenly makes you _stronger _or _faster._" Aaron leaned closer and hissed silently so that the other people in the room couldn't hear the next part of his conversation. "What's deep inside me isn't human—I haven't even got full control of myself and I lived with it for all my life, so imagine giving it to a man who hasn't had the time to train himself, or the being injected inside him. Your brother has no idea what he's getting himself into."

She stared at him and swallowed loudly, "You're lying to me"

"Elizabeth" she flinched from the way he said her name. Aaron gazed into her eyes for a second, searching if the old her was still in there. "Take my advice and get away from all of this" he motioned the room with his chin, "get away from all this madness before it explodes into something terrible."

The red head bit her lip and removed her eyes from the man on the table, and straightened herself. "I can't." Elizabeth clenched onto her slowly aching heart and stared at her feet, "I have to stay by his side no matter what. Even if I don't like what he's doing I have to stay by him." Aaron frowned and laid his head back on the table, disappointed. Elizabeth inhaled a breath and shyly spoke, "I just wanted to say that today is my last day in the lab, and I'll be a recruiter from now. I was really happy to see you." The back of her neck heated and her anger perked up suddenly, "I don't know why I'm telling you this because I know you hate me and my brother, but I just wanted to tell you goodbye!" Without waiting to hear what Aaron had to say, she backed a few steps from the metal cot and ran for the door.

"You're going to hate your brother once you realize he doesn't see you as an important person." This made her stop in the middle of the doorway, and look back at the man on the table. He was looking at her with unexpectedly bright, hazel eyes, and a lop-sided grin. The contact sent an electric shock to channel through body and she stumbled back a little in surprise. "Hope you know what you're doing, Liz."

She stared at the man a little bit longer and turned her back to him, and ran out the door. The man disappeared from her sight without a goodbye.

* * *

A beat skipped in everyone's heart as they witnessed the silver glow manifesting through the thick smoke. Men in black screamed for their lives as many were seen through their shadows being thrown by unknown forces. Elizabeth whipped around and backed away a few paces from the freighting power that began to make its self known. Through the thick fog of debris, the light split the cloud in half with a ghostly aura trailing behind it, aiming down to the dumbfounded red head. Elizabeth's eyes widened and her mouth parted in awe, as the blazing white light became closer and closer.

A series of loud robotic beeps invaded the air catching her attention. Regice dashed to her aid, locking itself in front of her, and crossed its large crystal arms into an X. The shimmering light blazed bright in an instant, accelerating to clash with the large ice type. The blow sent the Ice type skidding backwards, almost running over its master. Regice screeched at its attacker in its foreign language, pushing the force away. Elizabeth glared through the fading smoke to where her Pokémon had launched the energy back to, and was surprise to see a blue frog staring blankly back at her. The frog-like creature raised its orange tipped hand again in mid air, and lunched itself in her direction. Again, her Regice blocked the frog's attack and pushed the enemy away. Her eyes locked on the mysterious Pokémon,_ how did anyone get in here?_

A few coughs came from the blasted wall and emerging from it was no other than a tan breeder. Brock stuffed his nose into the sleeve of his shirt to use as an air filter, as his eyes scanned inside the room for his dear friend. "Ash! Ash, where are you!" Despite the commotion coming from the mysterious people in black, he could depict a faint _Brock _from the back of the burning room.

From behind him Dawn jogged her way up to him, clenching onto her empty poke ball, "Who are these people? There's so many of them!" Dawn coughed from the contaminated air and squinted through her lashes as they started to burn, "Do you think this is Team Galactic doing this?"

"Not likely." Brock watched as his Croagunk battled against a large Regice, as Dawn's Mamoswine rammed the men in black against the weak walls. Brock clenched his teeth in determination. _Whoever these people are they aren't here for the Pokémon. _Cupping his hand over his mouth, Brock called out to his friend, "Don't worry, I'm coming to get you!" Brock turned to the girl beside him, "Make a pathway for me using Mamoswine!"

Dawn smiled back at him with assurance, "You have my word!"

"PIKA PI!"

Both of them looked to where the voice came from, seeing Ash's Pikachu rushing tords them. The small mouse held a look of horror as it took in the scene. Through its ears it heard the cries of injured people, the crackle of the burning fire that consumed almost half of the room, and the one that had stricken the poor Pokémon's heart, was the sound of its trainers harsh breathing. Without acknowledging the two friends in the doorway, the Pikachu dashed passed them and entered chaos.

"Brock!" Ash nearly choked on the breeder's name, gasping for air greedily to shout another call for help.

There was something wrong with him, like as if his body was ready to explode. It wasn't his shoulder that caused him a great amount of pain, but rather something else, something that was hidden in the center of his chest. Ash glared down to the burnt carpet and wheezed, using his good hand to clench onto the front of his shirt. Maybe it was because he was in this room, or maybe it was because of this fear of never escaping that made him feel this way. Lifting his head and straightening his posture, Ash clenched his teeth and fought back the pain in his chest, to look at the situation around him. In that fog of smoke he saw shadows, random flashes of light, and heard the many yells of men in pain. This would be his and May's only chance of escaping. So clenching his jaw the teen quickly approached the girl still sitting on the floor and demanded her to get on her feet, and tightened his hold around her hand. Taking another glance around him, he spotted Dawn's Mamoswine clearing a path for them to run through, and they both made a dash for it.

Elizabeth growled as she recognized the two teens amidst the thick smoke and flames, and wildly reached into her pocket to call out her second Pokémon. The loud crack of the capsule caught Ash's attention, as the Pokémon's form began to take shape. His brown eyes widened. The Pokémon floated in mid air, as its magnetic hands beginning to spark elegant branches of yellow, waiting for its masters commands. "Magnezone, use Sonic Boom!" All three of Magnezone's magnets glowed white, a loud hum emerging from the large Pokémon as it spun around, generating its energy to send a shock wave to the two teens.

Ash yanked May into his body, as both returned to the ground, successfully dodging the deadly attack. The attack destroyed the wall where used to be a bed, and the roof collapsed, making the room look lopsided. Ash huffed as he felt the same tension in his chest spread out to his arms, causing a little difficulty to get back on his feet. Checking to see if the girl was okay, the boy nodded and both were on the move again.

Elizabeth screamed like a lose animal out of its cage and clawed the air as she demanded her next attack, "Thunder shock, and don't you dare miss this time!"

The Steel type began to charge itself, humming again in that metallic tone, its focus tacked on the two targets. Before Magnezone could release all that energy, a screech came from the shadows behind its target. A yellow glow with deadly sparks reeled the Steel type in, leaving a rustic scent in the air. It wasn't too long until that powerful force collided with the surprised Pokémon, completely sending the large Magnet to slam up to the ceiling, and electrocute itself. Ash blinked from the sudden change of attack, and gazed into the dissipating smoke. The electric type's cheeks flared with electricity, filled with anger and determination to protect its trainer. To protect its best friend. The Magnezone drifted out from its crater and glared at the small rodent below it, its magnets glowing white once again.

May tugged on Ash's hand desperately, "We have to get out of here! Come on!" Ash ignored her, staring out to his Pokémon charging up to attack the enemy. "Ash!" As if to voice her pleases, the Pikachu glanced over its shoulder to shout for its trainer to escape, asking to put his trust on it to protect them. Ash made a face of confliction, and depended on that hand in his from staying there to help his Pokémon. Ash gave a look of apology to the girl, turned his back on the fight that was yet to break out, and lead the rest of the way out of the room.

Pikachu's paws seeped into the burnt carpet, its sharp teeth exposed in a shrill of anger. The Magnezone was at its peak of its power and released a sound wave at the rodent, continuously aiming for it as the small Pokémon dodged each and every one. This made the steel type irritated, and it turned to another resort. Gliding closer for a clearer shot, the Magnezone began to make its own elegant electric show, its blue branches zapped at the ash filled air, charging up for the next deadly attack. Using its discharge to try and nail the rodent, the Magnezone spread its electricity in different directions for a higher chance of a hit. However, this Magnezone wasn't dealing with some armature Pikachu, but rather a highly trained one. Leaping into the air, bending its slender back to dodge the attack, Pikachu rotated its body to face the large Magnet, and screeched a battle cry as it used thunderbolt. A blistering sound came from the Steel type as the attack hit it dead on, and its large body lingered in the air with the scent of rusted metal. Before the large Magnet would hit the awaiting ground, a zap of red surrounded its body and carried the poor thing back into its pokeball.

Elizabeth glared at the pokeball in her hand and stuffed it in her coat pocket. _I'm going to have to replace you later._ Looking up to the damage that was done to the room, and her current situation she growled a cuss and came down to her decision. It was time to fall back. Retrieving her Regice's Pokeball she aimed it towards the Ice-Type, "Return!" Soon the light consumed the Ice-Type too. Clenching the sphere in her hand she called out to two remaining guards in the middle of holding back a Mamoswine, "The police will be here soon, it's time to return to base." A surprise look masked the two's faces making the red head more angry, "Come on you idiots, Listen to your Commander's orders!" Without question, the two guards recalled their Pokémon, and rushed to their leader's side.

"Ash!" Brock slowed to a halt as the view of his injured friend came clear.

Brock's eyebrows rose in shock, seeing the other person next to the panting boy. Not wanting to waste any time asking why May was here, Brock reached out to the overwhelmed boy, demanding him to use him as a support to get them out of the room. Assured that Ash's good arms were wrapped around his neck, Brock carried him out the rest of the way, shouting behind him for May to follow. Before she did, she chanced a look over her shoulder, her sapphire eyes meeting with blazing gold. The woman in white glared with a deep hatred at her and said something incomprehensible to May's ears. The guard to Elizabeth's left smashed something hard to the ground, suddenly creating an explosion of dark smoke to consume the three. May squinted through the thick smoke, and felt at ease when she saw them no longer there.

"Hey you!" May jumped in surprise as a bluenette grabbed onto her shoulder, "What are you doing? The building's going to collapse!" Tugging on her shoulder and eventually luring the teary eyed May, both girls rushed out of the flaming room and after the boy's footsteps.

As she ran with the girl who led her to safety the tears she so dearly held back, were released. They flew freely in the air as she ran freely out of the collapsing center.

For now she was free.

* * *

Ugh, I really don't like this chapter as much as my other ones…this stupid writer's block was really beating me up! So I don't expect much liking from you guys for this chapter but, here you go. I'll try to make up for this in the next chapter! Thank you so much for reading, and if you can review! It's the only thing that keeps me motivate to write!

See you soon, doves!

-Kimi


	7. Chapter 5: Bandages

Hello! It's me again! I am really struggling with this writer's block, and it's pissing me off! Well I managed to squeeze another chapter out, and it's only focused on the Ash and CO. because I couldn't find a way to write about what's going on with Elizabeth or Aaron yet xD Holy Crapola it was really hard writing this chapter, but i HOPE you enjoy reading it. And thank you for those who review, it keeps me going! 3

Also sorry if this a short chapter! I promise in the next it will have a lot of things to look forward too! Thanks again!

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Chapter 5

Bandages

The building had now been broken down to a crumbled ruin, the smoke twisted through the air like black ghosts reaching out to the gray sky, and the lingering smell of ash contaminated the air. The ongoing rain set a calming ambience, numbing the minds of those who mourned over the fall of the center. The rain's cold substance splashed atop of the crowd outside, over trainers and coordinators that had evacuated safely from the building. All of them stood in a solemn silence, watching the building slowly die. The downpour of the rain curtained the group, and common murmurs of _who did this, _and _how did this happen_ echoed softly within the crowd. Arrived police officers continued to command their Water Pokémon to calm down any hotspots inside the Center's rubble, and guided the gawking civilians to move onto the next town. Two Officer Jennies were currently questioning witnesses, asking if they had seen who created this disaster. Many of the answers were No, and there were only a few who recalled the black cloaked men who had been terrorizing the trainers in the hallways, but other than that there was nothing that could give them any leads. The Jennies thanked the people they questioned, and asked them to please leave the scene so they could investigate. The witnesses agreed, and headed out their ways.

May's eyes followed after the two Jennies as they both carried their conversation in hushed whispers, slowly walking towards the rubble to investigate. Guilt weighted on the girl's shoulders as her hands tightly coiled around the damp blanket wrapped around her, and began to suppress all the voices that hissed inside her head. She knew this had all happened because of her and the mere thought of the many ways she could have prevented all of it ate away her heart. Because of her many lives were put in danger and her best friend had gotten badly hurt. May's eyebrows crunched as she lowered her lashes, covering her face with a hand. _Why did I grab him into my room?_ It was a big mistake to allow the boy to see her. From the very begging she knew that. It had been her mission all along to stay hidden, away from Elizabeth, and away from anyone who got too close to her. Then why had she suddenly forget all of that when his name mentioned? May cursed silently to herself as she felt her own tears roll down her hand, growing frustrated that she was now crying. She wished she could reverse time. She wanted to go back to where she didn't have to worry about Elizabeth, or about her _new _self. She wanted to be just regular old May.

May's life had turned completely upside-down within only a matter of months. Ripped away from her family, and placed into a facility in the middle of nowhere, she had suffered through constant experiments and enclosure. Going in and out of the conditioning faculty where those lingering shadowed faces with long fingers touched and grabbed at her, as if she were something rare and could not be shared. Her first three weeks upon arriving were the worst days of her life, for she did not gain any sleep because of the loud moans that seem to easily seep through her metal door, or because of the constant paranoia of what was in store for her tomorrow. Recalling all those tormenting memories of shots and scalpels would occasionally flash behind her eyes, and it took everything for the girl to think of something else, just to keep her sanity. She could bear with it up until when she _did _sleep, and found herself rudely woken up from nightmares. Throughout her stay she had wondered how she got into this mess, and demanded answers. Ignored and cast away, it wasn't until she met the man behind her terror that was willing to grant her that wish. He told her everything she wanted to know.

He messed with her mind, telling her the hidden secrets of her arrival, and the reason why she was destined to be in what he called the Conditioning Faculty. May remembered watching the tall man as he pulled a chair across from her, feeling the mere panic of being just inches away from the man who was the reason for her pain. She felt exposed inside the boxed room of white, noting that the only furniture in the room was the two chairs they both sat in, and the large cherry wood table that divided them. The brunette's eyes were attracted to the blue bird patched onto the adult's shoulder, how it's deep blue shapes stood out over anything else, reminding her of the legendary bird Articuno. When she heard the man call her name she shivered and quickly obeyed his need of her attention. His piercing gold eyes bore into her sapphire ones, paralyzing her in the seat she so dearly griped onto, and a smile began to spread on his thin lips. She read inside those glowing eyes, seeing the way he slowly smiled within them, liking the idea that she was afraid of him. Like how everyone else here was afraid of him. Not moving, the man who soon introduced himself as Daniel began to reveal everything May wished to know.

At first she didn't believe him, but as he spilled everything out to her, the pieces seemed to click. Daniel explained it was her father that had brought her here. Norman used to work with Daniel who led a group study on the study of the chemical called _ACH _that he and his collages had discovered_._ Daniel had discussed to her how the wonderful discovery was the dawn of a new humanity, and how it would _have_ changed the world. The scientist curled his lip and his eyes grew sharp, causing May to suddenly whimper. The next thing he discussed was something that obviously ticked him off, and his facial expression hardened with slight irritation. Her father along with two other scientists that worked on the project with him didn't like his idea of creating a super race –planned to dominate over enemies and Pokémon, and decided to take away the chemical behind Daniel's back, destroying all evidence of it. However, some of it was saved. With the small amount of the remaining ACH, the scientists— including her father, distributed it among themselves, five shots, to four people, and one of those people happened to be her. May wanted to believe everything that the man told her were just a bunch of crazy lies, made up only to make her angry, but it wasn't until her second month inside the faculty that she had realized that the man wasn't crazy at all. ACH, as what he described, is a chemical that boosts up a person's senses and physical movement, but in reality the chemical is actually a living _thing _given a chance to live amongst a host to produce those human advancements_. _

An electric flutter squirmed inside the upset teen, causing the girl to flinch and fearfully remove her hand from her face to her abdomen. The day the thing had awakened inside her and took control of her body was a day she never could forget. It was horrendous, exhilarating, petrifying… It was a living nightmare and an abnormal heaven. It was like both good and evil were battling inside her at once and her sudden transformation was almost like a rebirth. Everything came clearer to her, louder, and faster. It bugged her so much how she couldn't feel or see things in the past as she did now, now being able to feel every crevice and bump on a wall, or see floating particles that would originally be invisible to the naked eye. It seemed almost unfair. Her hand relaxed on her stomach, as she felt the power inside her slither away, and disappearing almost suddenly. May really didn't like the feeling of that _thing_. Again glancing to the crumbled building May stood there basking in her shadowed memories, as the calls of the sky soundly cried atop her head. She stared at the downpour, her advanced eyes catching every droplet gracefully spiraling to its end. Every shard of crystal shimmered in the dim evening, despite there being no light, twinkling invisible prisms of rainbows inside its form. The sight of the collision with the ground was strikingly beautiful, the trapped colors crashing into matted grass, and bouncing up and down in puddles. Like the sky was crying out diamonds rather than water. It was distracting, and disorienting. Her ability to see everything was still able to throw her off balance. _If only everyone got to see the rain like this._

"Hey!" May cocked her head to her right, watching a girl with long bluenette hair approach her with a gentle smile placed on her lips, and arms tightly wrapped around her chest. _It's that girl from before._ Dawn crept closer into her jacket, pulling the hood over her dampened hair, and shivered, "This weather is crazy huh?"

"Yeah, but it's nice." May's shrugged, looking back to the rubble, "It certainly helped calm the fire."

"I guess." Dawn watched her breath come out in thin puffs as she followed the teen's gaze, "What a disaster. It's such a shame the Center is burned to a crisp." Her midnight eyes darkened, "The place only stood for a year. Did you know that?"

May cringed, "No…no I didn't." May shifted her weight to her opposite leg, "I feel horrible for all those people. Having to go through all that."

"Yeah" Dawn stressed in a sigh, and lifted a hand to push back a loose strand of Cobalt hair, "But at least no one got hurt! Oh, and Nurse Joy told me that all of the Pokémon in the center were transferred to another one just a few miles from here." A relived sigh came from May. _Thank goodness. _Dawn shifted her eyes to the older teen, "Are _you_ okay though?"

May halfheartedly raised her bandaged arms to show the girl she was already taken care of and faked a smile, "It stings a little but I'm okay." Assured that the she was fine, Dawn watched the officers search through the center's rubble for any hotspots. For what felt like the hundredth time, May's eyes glided across the field to where three people sat, her gaze pinned on a raven boy who laid on the his back against the drenched grass, eyes focused on the sky as his mouth moved with a twinge of a smile, with the Nurse beside him caring to his wounds. May frowned. _How can he be smiling and cracking jokes over there when he's hurt?_ May recalled him doing that before when he tried confronting Elizabeth, and wondered what his problem was. Or perhaps she was missing something? She really didn't understand it.

Dawn's eyes followed the brunette's stare and laughed, "Can you believe that? Chatting away as if there was nothing wrong."

"It's annoying" May muttered and clenched her teeth, gaze still locked on the now laughing trainer, "how is he able to do that?" It was making her jealous. Why couldn't she laugh at pain?

"Well, he's an idiot and probably just in shock. But I think he's just happy to be alive." May stared at her. Dawn's laugh sounded like clinking bells, and her cheeks rose from how big of a smile she gave to the brunette, "You should be smiling too." Not really sure how to respond to such a statement, May blushed and averted her gaze. _I don't get them, all of them. I just don't get it… _"Oh!" Dawn shouted with surprise, catching May's attention again. She stuck her hand out in front of the flustered girl and introduced herself, "My name is Dawn by the way, I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself when I arrived."

May firmly shook her hand, "I'm May." She paused, biting her lip, and tightened her hold on the girls hand, "I want to say thank you for rescuing me and Ash also, being that I haven't gotten the chance earlier." May contentedly smiled, dropping her hand to bow with gratitude, "Thank you so much."

Dawn fanned a hand as she nervously giggled, "N-No need for that! I would be willing to help anyone who was in a need of help!" May straightened her posture as Dawn wiggled beside her with embarrassment, "You're welcome though, even though it was Brock who really saved you two." May thanked her again, and removed her gaze from the blushing girl. Dawn was messing with the hem of her pink jacket, her cooling cheeks brushing the inside silk of her hood, causing her to slightly shiver. She wished she had gloves.

Inhaling the water stained air and shifting on her feet, the young girl listened to the squish of muddy grass under her feet and the low claps of thunder above her. The two remained quiet, listening to the chatter of officers, and the frequent laughs coming from across the field. Dawn's eyes chanced a look to see what the brunette next to her was doing, seeing that she was again looking in the direction of where the laughing was coming from. Dawn frowned at the sight, not liking how the teen's eyebrows crunched in deep thought as her face masked a sign of sadness and worry. It didn't fit her. Snuggling closer, face shadowed by her large hoody, Dawn hid. She thought about what just transpired an hour ago, remembering the scene of the room that was completely engulfed in flames. As Brock carried Ash away from the scene just before the building collapsed, Dawn rushing in to get the girl who stood frozen inside, staring back at the woman in white. The way those wide eyes stared at the attacker made Dawn almost want to cry. _So much fear…_ Not letting her emotions get to her she managed to drag the girl out in time, just mere seconds before the room was consumed with the deadly collapse of the center's roof. _Why were those people there in the first place? _Most importantly, something that bugged Dawn the most, was who were they after? Was it Ash? Was it May? She exhaled, her head pinging in slight pain on the thought. _I'll ask about it later. _She didn't want to remind the teen about those people, seeming that she was not quite a fond of them.

May suddenly tensed, catching narrowed eyes from across the field to her, as the older teen smiled at her, and fanned a hand for her and Dawn to come over. May reached out to tap Dawn's shoulder, and began to move her feet, "I think Brock wants to talk to us." Dawn nodded and followed in her footsteps, crossing the drenched field over to the group.

* * *

"There you go dear, all wrapped up."

Ash scanned over the nurse's work and genuinely smiled to her, "Thank you Nurse Joy, I really appreciate everything that you've done." The woman smiled back, quickly returning her gauze's and supplies back into her emergency kit.

A gust of wind bit at his exposed skin, touching it as if to cool down the burns on his right shoulder, and calming down the anxiety packed inside him. His breath exhaled in thin clouds of smoke, fading into the dark night, to be illuminated by the red and blue flashes from Police sirens, and the few white beams from searching flashlights. Turning his chin, Ash set his gaze onto his Pikachu, who had been sitting next to him, not once moving away from his side. Ash gave his trademark grin and turned a fraction of his body tords the yellow mouse. The Pokémon moved closer to him, so that its soft cheeks rubbed against its trainers, a broken whimper calling out his name. Ash's eyes lowered as he tried to bite back his tears, choosing instead to lean his forehead into his friends in a way to comfort it. Ash didn't react when he felt something other than cold rain slide down his cheek, and only whispered comforting words to his best friend. For the past few minutes they both stayed like that, trainer and Pokémon nuzzled against each other as one repeated its best friends name in a native tongue, constantly regretting not getting to him sooner. Ash lips cracked into a small smile as he reached a bandaged hand to pet the top of Pikachu's head and behind its ears. Whoever said that a trainer and Pokémon couldn't have a strong friendship had never gotten the chance to meet Ash and his Pikachu. The way they looked out for each other, acted as if they were brothers rather than master and subject, just how they saw each other in general, was something rather amazing to see. If only real human relationships were that common, weren't as rare. Sensing that his Pokémon was at its breaking part, Ash forced himself to sit up, reaching out to pick up his small friend, and hugged it closely to his chest.

Ash glanced up to blue eyes staring at him, with a gentle smile, "Your Pikachu really looks after you" Nurse Joy shut the latches on her emergency kit, eyes still on the heartwarming scene, "And he's lucky to have a trainer who cares for him too."

"I'm really lucky he's my best friend!" Ash laughed, looking down to the now calmed electric type, "We've been through a lot together." The Nurse gave him another smile, and rose from her spot, walking away to return the emergency kit to Officer Jenny.

"Hey Ash" Ash turned to the breeder who was waving out to someone across the field, "I think we should get a hotel in Lilypad tonight, it's been a long day."

"Yeah that sound nice" Ash turned in the direction Brock was waving to, seeing two silhouetted figures slowly moving towards them, "I could really use some sleep." As if to prove his point he yawned, fanning a hand over his mouth. Brock chuckled, getting up and walking to ask if someone would give them a lift. The two silhouetted figures from before stepped into the space where they became visible, their faces fanned with reds and blues. Ash glanced between the two of them and eyebrow raised, "So you two have met huh?"

Dawn nodded, "Yeah, we were chatting it up a bit over there" she tilted her chin in the direction they came from, "How are you feeling?"

Ash gave a chuckle as he supported the Pikachu with one arm and using his bandaged one to scratch the back of his midnight hair, "I've been better, but all my cuts are covered up, and I walked away with just a dislocated shoulder! Nurse Joy had to pop it back in place." Ash cringed, remembering the sharp and discomforting snap it made, "It was kind of gross."

"Well thank goodness I wasn't here to see THAT." Dawn crossed her arms, and exhaled, "So what's up?"

"We're going to stay at in a hotel in Lilypad town. Brock just went to ask for a ride."

Dawn's eyes widened and an excited grin surfaced on her lips, "No freaking way! It's been a while since we stayed in a hotel!" Dawn squealed, and unexpectedly grabbed at the girl's hands that stood beside her, "We can share a room!"

May shifted her eyes, "I don't know… I mean, I don't have money to pitch into the room—"

"That's okay! I can pay for your stay. I mean it's no big deal really." May stared at her for a long minute, biting her lip. She frowned, "Do you not want to share a room?"

Her eyes widened, "N-No! I don't mind sharing a room it's—"

Dawn clasped her hands, a smile back up again, "Good! Then we'll share rooms!" Seeing that there was no use in arguing against the Bluenette, May sighed, and nodded in agreement.

Ash chuckled at the two, happy to see that they were getting along. May's eyes automatically moved to him, surprising him slightly because she was _glaring_ at him. Ash gave her a questioned look, but only got a head turned in return. He blinked, _what's wrong with her? _Deciding to push the look away, the trainer carefully placed his Pikachu on the grass as he strained himself to stand.

May's attention was placed on him again, and she took a step forward, with a hesitant hand out to him, "Don't you think you should be lying down a little bit longer?"

The boy glanced at her. _What happened to that look just a few seconds ago? _Ash shook his head, successfully accomplishing standing, and stretched his arms. A few bones popped, and he tensed at the noise, hoping it wasn't his shoulder. Seeing that he could move his arms just fine he relaxed, and smiled in the direction of the brunette, "I'm fine, see? It takes a lot to keep me down!"

May just stared at him. Her eyebrows slightly furrowed as her eyes trailed over him, observing the damage that was now covered up. His bare chest was wrapped with gauze, overlapping so that it moved to wrap his right shoulder, clean to human eyes, but filthy in her's. Yellow blotches that will eventually turn blue patched up the left side of his stomach, and his arms just like her, were also wrapped with gauze. May's breathing hitched and she quickly removed her eyes, clenching her hands by her sides.

Ash noticed her sudden change of expression and frowned, his eyes dimming with distress, "May, I'm honestly okay." Ash waited for her to give him a smile, or a sign of ease, but she remained there, glaring at the ground. He sighed and stridden over to his backpack just a few steps away from the girls, and retrieved his white shirt, tugging it over his head. He really didn't like to see her this way. It bothered him so much.

"Alright guys!" Brock shouted to the three, jogging to inform them of his news, "Let's get going!"


	8. Chapter 6: Wounds

Yeah so guess who's back? I have no excuses to why this took so long. Blame me for my awesome procrastination. Well anyways! I managed to FINALLY get this done, and I've had a lot of trouble with finishing it too. I had completed this chapter twice while trying it up on , but you know how much of an ass FF can be and lost it. So yeah that's part of the reason why this took so long

So here you go! And sorry honestly for those of you who have been waiting... Thanks and enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 6

Wounds

Elizabeth's breathing hitched as she walked beside her two henchmen down the narrow hallway. The chrome walls crept closer and the view of the large metal door up ahead sent her fingernails to dig into her palms. Elizabeth's nerves were out of control, her heart beated like a humming bird's wing, quickly, and frantically. She had her reasons to panic, now that her brother had found out what had happened. How can she possibly relax? The incident was being broadcasted on every news channel, radio, and website everywhere. Reporters wondered who had started the fire, people questioned about the reason, and the Police reframed all information away from the public. On the way back to her Brother's main center, her and her two guards listened to a newscaster on the radio announce the overall damage left behind, and her heart stopped when the man had said 6 people were found dead inside the rubble. Those 6 people, who happened to be her subordinates, were found dead.

Elizabeth squeezed her eyes shut and whimpered in sudden fear. Daniel was going to kill her. She had given themselves away to the public, and that was the one thing her brother had instructed her not to do. The red head opened her eyes again to the metal door in front of her, now in arms distance, and wanted to imminently run away. On the other side of that door would be her brother, waiting, and ready to pounce on her once her red heels entered inside the room. _I-I have to go in._Taking a shaky breath, her pale hand trembled as she grasped the door handle, holding it in an iron grip. From there she couldn't bring herself to turn it.

A hand firmly rested on her shoulder startling her, and her sight met up with emerald underneath a black hood, "We will be right beside you." A small smile surfaced on the man's tan face, and he spoke in a very thick accent, "You will not be alone." Another hand patted her back on the opposite side of her, another reassuring smile urging her to open the door.

Biting her lip and tightening her hand on the handle, she mentally counted to three, feeling those supporting hands on her shoulders, and opened the heavy door.

The three cautiously entered into the bright white space, large, and empty except for the two bulky guards frozen in place in the center of the room. Between them, a cherry wood desk sat in the middle with someone sitting behind it. Elizabeth's breathing quickened as she forced herself to stand in front of the two guards, her eyes tacked on the clean white tiles, and away from the dangerous golden eyes that were just across the way. A long ten seconds passed in silence until she heard the man in front of her mutter something to the guards, leading them to remove themselves from inside the room, and out of the door. Elizabeth swallowed, the tension in the room raising the hairs on her arms, and bringing her eyes to water. She couldn't take this much anxiety.

"Elizabeth" a husky voice echoed in the small room, vibrating the woman's frame with such power, "You have no idea how angry- no, how _Enraged_I am over what you have done." Refusing to lift her blurry eyes she heard the man's tone sharpen, "Care to explain what happened sister?"

The two bodies beside her shifted, waiting for the silence to be broken again by their master. Elizabeth gulped, and parted her lips, "I-I was only trying to complete my mission—"

** "You went against the code!"** A hard fist slammed over the cherry wood desk, forcing Elizabeth to look up with surprise, meeting Daniel's cold eyes. "Even if you were doing your mission or not, you know the rules, and you must oblige to them." Daniel huffed and directed his glare onto the guards who stood next to her, watching them as they hid behind their black hoods. "And you two...you also have a duty to make sure your master doesn't do anything stupid! Yet you lagged your asses' right beside her like the dam idiots you are!"  
Remaining silent, the two men just nodded, secretly shivering over their leaders booming voice.

Daniel's eyes towered over his sister again, as she hopelessly stared back at him, her pearly teeth cowardly biting into her bottom lip. Her brother huffed angrily through his nostrils, and stood up from his seat to begin pacing back and forth the length of the table, "Do you realize what you have done Elizabeth? What you have now pushed onto me?" Daniel cursed the air with a hand, and furrowed his brows, "You have broken all the codes that we strictly agreed to go by, have got us involved in the media, and now you come back empty handed!" With a fiery glare, he jabbed a finger to his temple, snarling down to his idiotic sister, "Is your head not _screwed on_tight?"

"Brother!" Elizabeth begged.

Daniel growled, "It seems I have to remind you of our codes since you do not remember them." He struck a finger up and hissed, "_Code 1:_Do not attract attention to civilians or harm them in any way. Proceed through mission quietly and peacefully without any fault of being notice." Elizabeth swallowed loudly, grasping the front of her white jacket to help her release the tension rapidly growing inside her. "Code 2!" He spat, pausing his pacing to hold up two fingers and snarl at the three, "If you are unable to capture a subject without breaking code 1, then you must follow, lure, and manipulate to achieve capturing your subject." Daniel laughed darkly to himself, leaning over the desk to come closer to the three. His teeth exposed into a sinister smile, like a wolf about to snap its prey, "Oh, and the last Code" Another laugh, and a twinge of a snarl, "Never leave your subordinates behind."

"B-Brother, you don't understand! Her and this bo—"

"But what do you do!" he boomed in a powerful voice, causing her to whimper back, "You go and burn down a care center with hundreds of people inside it, order your men to attack on bystanders, and did not even think about your situation before moving in to capture the subject! You left your subordinates to **DIE**, and left them like the belligerent coward you are!" The room stayed tense, with only Daniel's heavy breathing filling their ears. Daniel squeezed his eyes close and massaged the bridge of his nose, "I didn't expect this to happen from you Elizabeth, my own sister!"

Elizabeth swallowed her courage, and skittishly lowered her eyes, "I-I'm sorry Brother, I promise you it will not happen again!"

"To HELL it won't!" He lashed out again, slamming a hand again on the desk, while the other quickly grasped a handful of her collar to bring her out closer. Elizabeth yelped in surprise, and blinked back terrified tears as the man in front of her zeroed his eyes into hers. "I really don't like to be this harsh in front of you, but if this is the only way you'll remember how to follow our codes, then I must!" Elizabeth's vision blurred and her pants became more vocal with fear. This was not the face of her brother; this nasty, angry face was not her brother.  
Seeing her sight lose him for a second, Daniel shook her abruptly, demanding attention again, "If ever I hear you leave your subordinates again, or get any information that you have harmed a civilian" Daniel laughed darkly and his eyebrows rose slightly, "Well... Let's just leave it at that and spare the gruesome details"

Nodding and sobbing, she gave Daniel her understanding, and he forcefully pushed her back, slamming her into the white tiles. The fiery leader straightened himself up, and turned his eyes to the shocked gentlemen behind his sister, "As for you two" Daniel curled his lip as he clapped his hands, "You will be spending the night in the cellar."

The cellar was something that sent Goosebumps up Elizabeth's neck, knowing well enough what her brother was talking about. At one point, she had to spend a night in the cellar—when she had angered her brother during a presentation and made him look bad in front of his colleagues— and it was a night she'd never forget. The cellar was a deep, dark, and claustrophobic space underneath the Warehouse, were they kept bodies of unfortunate subjects to use for study. Elizabeth remembered the stench of decay, the unknown shadows that breezed past her when she stayed there, the feeling of death around her, the moans and yells and screams for freedom seeping from the rooms above her. You could hear everything that went on inside the building there, and you couldn't mute them out. No matter how hard you covered your ears. She felt sorry for them.

A door creaked open with the two guards from before quickly approaching the cloaked men, startling Elizabeth from her dark daydream. Both subordinates were tugged away from their spots, and were now being dragged away. The man with the green eyes shot a wide-eyed glance to Elizabeth and whispered something to her before disappearing out of the room.  
___  
_

"Siz tamam olacak! Sen Güçlü!"

And then it was just her.

Daniel glared at her again, "Elizabeth, I'm going to be sending you off tomorrow to go find that girl." Daniel watched her slowly nod, urging him to continue. He gave her a stern gaze, his tone turning metallic and sharp, "And you shall not return until you have her…do you understand me?"

"I-I understand brother." Her eyes fell and she frowned, "I promise I will not let you down."

"Good." Daniel curtly responded, nodding to her and stepping away from the desk, "You leave at dawn."

When the hatch loudly clicked, and the door was shut, Elizabeth gasped and brought her hands over her face. The tears that were enclosed inside her flooded out, gliding down her hands and trailing down her arms as she cursed loudly within the white room. She hated him, hated him so much. Why couldn't she stand up for herself? Why was she so afraid of him? She could easily make him cower, make him fear her as much as he made her fear him, she could do all of that.

_Then just why!_ Elizabeth growled and ran up to the desk in front of her, and violently kicked it, sending it screeching a few feet back. She screamed, hands clenched tightly by her sides and tears fleeing down her pink cheeks. Stomping her feet and trembling with hatred, her hair danced around her like fire, vibrant crimson strands shuddering, exposed inside the bright room. Her lungs hurt and her eyes burned, but she continued to dam the earth her so called leader walked on.  
After minutes of foul words and strained screeches, her voice could no longer hold, and she remained there, in the center of the room, and cried her heart out, wishing, hoping, praying that the day would come when she would be able to send fear into her brother's heart.

She grunted wiping at her puffy eyes, and scoffed, "W-Why do I even bother calling you such a thing?" When he only just used her, and pushes her around like his own rag doll. What was the use in calling him brother? There was no more love, no more admiration between them, so what was the use in being called brother and sister? Elizabeth glared at the tipped desk and huffed, "It's a shame that I actually believed in you."

"What a shame indeed."

Her eyes snapped up to a tall man leaning against the doorway, her heart pounding loudly with surprise. Elizabeth sighed, recognizing the man, and rubbed her eyes again. The blonde wore all black and held a frown on his face, his coal colored eyes measuring with hers. He had heard the entire rant of his partner with shock, and didn't like what he saw. He furrowed his eyebrows and sighed, "You look horrible Liz."

"Shut…your dam mouth" She mumbled, running a hand to smooth out her hair, "What are you doing back so early?"

"Well" he stressed, removing himself from the doorway, "I found more on that subject 1 like you wanted me to, and I got more than what I thought I'd actually get from those dam b_a_stards."

Elizabeth blinked, "You did?"

"Yeah" he smiled and stood in front of her, looking over her at a closer distance, "I've never seen you cry before, but to be honest you play the red cheeks and pout really well."

Elizabeth arched an eyebrow and sniffled, rubbing her eyes, "I'm going to ignore that. What did you find out Rin?"

"It's true though" Rin smiled, and walked past her to the tipped desk, and flipped it back on its four legs, taking a seat on top of it, "Before I start talking about what I found, I want to talk about that flash drive we retrieved from that nice scientist a couple days back." Elizabeth nodded, and quietly listened. "Well most of the files on it were filed with useless formulas for some vaccine the dam guy had been working on, and some pictures of weird plants." Rin rolled his eyes, never really understanding who in their right mind would keep pictures of plants on their flash drives, and smiled, "but there was something I found that was quite interesting." Rin's brows rose and he laid his head lazily on his shoulder, "I found the scientist's digital diary, packed with his all his personal thoughts and ideas." The man licked his lips, "His wife was mentioned a couple times, sounds hot."

"Would you please grow up and get to the point." Elizabeth growled, not in the mood to deal with her partner's pervy comments.

"Well, he mentioned the boy…" Elizabeth stiffened. "He mostly draged on about how he mustn't be found, and how he promised to keep him safe and yadda, yadda, yadda." Rin waved his hand, straightened his posture, and stared into the woman's eyes seriously, "But then he got to a part in the middle of his rant about Aaron. Not sure how this is relevant, but he kept saying he needed to protect the boy for Aaron."

"Aaron?" she tested the name on her lips and dropped her gaze. _I haven't heard that name in such a long time…_

"Yeah" Rin cocked an eyebrow, "What do you think that means?"

"I'm not sure really…" What did that mean? She smacked her lips and furrowed her eyebrows, "Well, What else did you find out?"

"From the flash drive? Nothing other than Aaron having something to do with subject 1. But from visiting Hoenn?" The man's smile curved and he laughed, "I found out the kid's name. Kinda weird if you ask me."

"You did!" she squeaked with excitement, something she had never done before, and grabbed onto her partner's arm. Rin nodded and laughed again, boasting in his glory. "That's great! Wonderful news! Tell me, what's his name?"

"His name…" he scratched his chin with his free hand and tried to recollect his information, "Let's see…I think his name was—no not that."

"What is it?" her heart was beating fast again, and her palms grew clammy as she tightened her hold on him with anticipation, "What's his name!"

"Oh!" Rin's eyes widened and he pointed a finger with recognition, "I remember now, his name was Ash!"

Ash.

Elizabeth grew timid. Ash. The image of the boy with the zigzag freckles, raven hair, and blazing brown eyes surfaced inside her mind, making her heart lurch, and her hands shake as the image became clearer. Her breathing shook as she removed her grasp from Rin's and stared bewilderingly at nothing. The room was spinning. The boy, who everyone hunted, was the boy in that room of fire, the boy who stood up to her, and the boy who had ruined her operation. Elizabeth shook her head, "Impossible."

"What's wrong?" Rin jolted up from the table to caress her shoulders, holding a very worried look, "What's wrong Elizabeth?"

Elizabeth snapped out of her shock, and she looked at her partner with a new spark in her eyes. Eyes full of determination and fiery vengeance. "Tomorrow you're coming with me." Elizabeth ordered and pushed him away, turning on her heel to rush for the door.

"W-Wait!" Rin ran to meet up with her, reaching out to tug on her wrist, getting her attention, "Why? Where are we going?"

Turning to him, she gave him a striking smile full of assurance and new found hope, "To Sinnoh. I happen to know where to find our subject 1 and he happens to be traveling with our beloved #12."

* * *

Murmurs carried out from behind the bathroom door, as Ash sat in front of it, his legs stretched out on the tiled floor, and his back against the sink's cream cabinets. Brock's voice was low and filled with stress. His wordless sentences dragged on forever and grew in and out of a dead silence. Sometimes every now and then Ash would hear a sigh and the sound of his feet pacing around in the room. The loud patter of water also played in the background, growing hollowed as the flow rose slowly within the teen's awaiting bathtub. Ash frowned and brought a hand to mangle with his bandaged hair, careful to avoid the still soft spots.

Upon arriving inside the hotel, everyone huddled around the lobby desk to be assigned to their rooms, and Ash had excused himself from his friends to take a bath before heading to bed. Not just three minutes had passed as Ash lent over to turn the bathtub on did he hear the telephone ring five times inside the bedroom, before it was picked up by Brock. Soon after picking up the phone, he listened into the conversation going on between Brock and the mystery caller, curious about the way Brock's tone seemed to turn from a "hello nice to hear from you" to a "Calm down, everything is okay." Not too long into the conversation did Ash realize who Brock was talking to, and it made Ash want to run out of the bathroom and hide somewhere deep within the city.

It wasn't surprising that his mother would find out about what had transpired hours ago. The entire media crew had arrived on scene when they left and it was likely that she heard the shocking news on the television set. But just his mother knowing about what had happened to him only meant that Ash's journey was officially at its end. That was it. Brock would have no choice but to oblige to his mother wishes on returning him home and his mission on becoming a Pokémon master would be on hold for…for however long it was going to take to get back on the road.

Jaw clenched, Ash rose from his spot and proceed over to his bath, ignoring the pain in his inflicted shoulder, and the uncomfortable tugging within his stomach that responded. Shredding out of his clothing and mentally blocking the conversation going on outside his bathroom door, he stepped inside the warm bath.

A long sigh escaped the teen's lips as he lowered himself deeper into the tub. Hiss tired eyes randomly gazed at the black strands of his hair floating gracefully around in the water and carried over to his arms, unwrapped to reveal the developing bruises and carpet burns. Rotating to get a better look at them, Ash hissed in pain, not realizing just what kind of condition he was in. His entire body ached and every muscle seemed to twitch or tug if he moved the wrong way. It was a good thing he made it behind a closed door, because pulling on a smile to cover up this pain seemed impossible. Grunting, Ash reached for a bar of soap and a rag that neatly sat on the tub's edge, and began to clean himself. His skin burned, but it felt nice to get all the ash and dirt off of him, and the warm water began to relax some of the muscles in his shoulders and legs.

_I wonder if May is in this much pain too…_Did her arms ache? Could she walk okay? He wondered what she doing now. Maybe sleeping, or talking to Dawn. Those two could be possible answers. Ash dunked his rag into the soapy water, and ranged it out, flopping it over the edge of the tub. What was going on with her? Why were people after her? Did her parents know about what was going on? Was there any way he could help? Ash wanted answers to these questions. He wanted them so bad. He never did like being left in the dark, and knowing that his best friend wasn't the one giving him the answers bugged him even more. Sucking a deep breath, squeezing his eyes shut, Ash leaned back, and let the water consume him.

...

When Ash had stepped out of the bathroom, towel hung around his neck and hair dripping with water; he was surprised to see Brock still on the phone. The breeder's tone was back to its cheery state and a big smile was plastered on his face. On the other line a laugh was blaring through the speakers, and Ash recognized it as Brock's mother. Ash felt his lips twitch up, and he walked over to his bed to throw the towel on the mattress and pat the head of his sleeping Pikachu. When his hands glided back and forth atop the mouse's head, it purred, and pressed closer into his palm, still remaining asleep.

"You've had a long day" Ash broke into a small smile and patted Pikachu's head once more before pulling back, "Love you buddy."  
A phone clacked against a receiver, attracting Ash's attention. Brock yawned, and stretched his arms up in the air "My mother just loves chatting my ear off." Ash smiled and walked over to the other side of the room to sit himself in a chair. "I'm beat!" Brock smacked his lips and ran a hand through his hair, "I think I'm going to hit the sack. Are you going to stay up?"

"Yeah, after that bath I'm a bit wired."

"I thought baths made people more sleepy" Brock yawned half of the sentence, and pulled back the covers of his bed, crawling inside them, "Well don't stay up too late, we got to wake up early tomorrow."

"Okay... Well, I'm a little hungry, so I'll just step outside to see if I can scavenge some food, then I'll come right back." Ash paused, waiting for an okay or _come back quickly when you're done_, but was answered through the deep breaths coming from Brock, and the rise and fall of his chest. Ash laughed softly, rising from his seat, "Goodnight Brock."

Quietly, Ash crossed over to the door and entered into the hallway. Seeing the green light blink on the handle, indicating it was locked, Ash headed for the lobby. To be completely honest, Ash wasn't hungry at all. Shocking as it was, he just wanted an excuse to get some fresh air. He didn't want to be stuck inside of his room with his thoughts to rant freely inside his head. Ash was not up for a headache tonight. Rounding the corner leading to the elevators, Ash paused in mid-stride, surprised to see who occupied the hallway.

Walking up to the dazed girl, he bent down, and touched her shoulder. May gasped, eyes growing wide and body jerking away from the touch. Seeing that it was only Ash she sighed and glared at the teen, "You scared me!"

"I'm sorry" Ash laughed and decided to sit next to her, "I thought you fell asleep in the middle of the hallway."

May stirred nervously and glanced away, "That's kind of what I'm trying to do."

"And why is that?" Ash arched an eyebrow. She didn't answer him, and just remained there playing with the hem of her filthy jumpsuit, avoiding his gaze. Ash was starting to get impatient and urged her to answer him, "Did you forget you're key or something?"

"No." May bit her lip and managed to look at him again. His brown eyes bore into hers in question and he gave her a reassuring smile. May sighed and felt a blush lightly surface on her face, "I just can't sleep in there. I-I can't sleep inside a warm room with a bed... not yet." Her eyes darkened and went out of focus, "The first bed I want to sleep in is my own, in Hoenn."

"But May you're going to be sore in the morning" Ash frowned, "And you really do need to rest."

"I can sleep out here."

"No, you certainly cannot." May pouted and narrowed her eyes in annoyance. Ash narrowed his eyes back, "May you need to sleep in your own bed, and get some rest. I understand you want to go home, and you miss your family." Ash scooted closer so he could lightly pat her hand, and smiled warmly at her, "But you don't want to be worn out and sick when you see them. That wouldn't be nice." May lowered her eyes and crunched her eyebrows, seeming to take in what he was saying. "Come on" Ash used the wall behind him to lift himself up, hiding the pain that shot up his ribs when he did so, and gestured his hand towards May. "I'll walk you to your room."

May glanced between the hand stretched out to her and the boy's face, fighting over if she should just give in or stay there and sulk the whole night. May feathered her hand into his, and allowed him to pick her up off the floor. Ash nodded, dropping her hand, and walked beside her, heading back in the direction he came from.

They talked about the lovely decorations the hotel had, and fantasized about what kind of meals the luxurious hotel had to offer in the morning. May had smiled for once that night and cheerily whispered how she hoped the hotel served ramen for her to eat tomorrow. It was such a pointless topic to talk about, but it didn't matter. They were talking as if they didn't have any current problems yo worry about, and were laughing with each other once again. Ash sneaked a look when May rambled off about the foods she missed and felt his heart skip a beat. The way her eyes brightened into a crystal blue and her lips curved up in the moment of happiness made Ash realize just how much he missed seeing May like this. Yes, this is what he was used to seeing. Ash beamed to himself and felt his cheeks flare in warmth. It was really nice to see this part of her again.

Walking down the set of familiar numbers, Ash's eyes scanned down the hallways doors aimlessly, catching his own room number as he did so. "May what room are you staying in?"

"204"

Ash returned to her with a smile and laughed, "Right next to mines! Great, now we don't have to worry about finding each other in the morning!"

May nodded, slowing to a stop in front of her door, "Yeah that's really great."

An awkward silence loomed over them as they stood in front of their doors, both not really wanting to say goodnight to the other. Ash grunted, interrupting the silence and nodded to May, "Well I'll see you in the morning I guess."

"Yeah" May stuffed a hand into her pockets to retrieve her key, and smiled back at the boy, "Goodnight Ash."

Ash grinned, and also reaching inside his pockets to retrieve his key, only to touch the cloth of his pajama pants, and not the plastic card. Confused, Ash patted his pockets and began to glance around him, wondering if he might have dropped it somewhere. Not seeing it anywhere in sight, Ash moaned, "Don't tell me-!"

"What's wrong?" May swiped her card into the door, getting a cheery beep in return, "Did you forget something?"

Ash groaned and smacked his forehead against his hotel door, "I'm locked out."

May's eyes widened, "You don't have your key?" Ash nodded, lifting his forehead just mere inches, and hitting it lightly on the door again. Irritated, May slapped his arm and fumed, "How could you forget your hotel key! Didn't you look to see if you had it before closing the door?" Ash flinched, feeling the spreading burn branch up his arm on impact. May gasped realizing she had forgotten about his arms, and panicked. "I'm sorry I really didn't mean to do that! Are you okay? D-Did I hurt you?"

Ash laughed and rustled the top of her head, "I'm fine May, no need to panic."

"But aren't you in pain?"

Ash stared down at her, hand still placed atop her head, as her blue eyes stared back at him with worry and guilt. Her eyes watered and a blush dusked her cheeks, the weight of his eyes making her slightly nervous. Ash found himself frowning and shook his head, quickly replacing it with a small smile. He really didn't like to see her sad.  
Ash's hand glided down to her cheek, his thumb swiping a tear from the corner of her eye, "May, you don't need to look so scared" A row of teeth exposed from his smile, "I'm alive and here, and that's all that matters."

Her eyes fell and she tugged on the hem of her sleeves, "S-Sorry."

"It's okay." Ash sighed and retrieved his hand back to run it through his hair, "Now I guess I have to rent out another room or something." May remained silent, only paying attention to her fingers curling over a broken button on her sleeve. Ash shrugged and stepped back, throwing a last smile in May's way, "Well I guess I better go bug the lobby girl. I'll see you tomorrow, okay May?"

Turning around Ash proceeded towards the lobby, only to be slightly pulled back by a hand, clenching onto the back of his shirt. Glancing over his shoulder, Ash was met with May hiding behind her bangs, only her long lashes remaining visible, and her teeth curtly biting into her bottom lip. Hands still clenched onto his shirt, her frame swayed nervously as she parted her lips to try and say something, but nothing vocalized and she blushed in frustration. _Just say it…Just spit it out! _May frowned and squeezed her eyes tightly, again attempting to speak.

Ash raised an eyebrow and couldn't help breaking into another smile, "Yes May?" It was obvious she wanted him to know something, and when she blushed deeper and struggled to speak out, it made him curious about what was going on inside the brunette's head. He patted her shoulder, being that she still had a tight grip on him, and urged her to speak, "Come on out and say it May, whatever is on your mind can't possibly be that bad." _Right?_

Nodding, May inhaled a deep breath, held it in, and exhaled with an answer, "Do you…want to sleep in my room tonight?" Her eyes glided up to meet his and she bit her lip.

"Um" Ash scratched his chin and shrugged his shoulders, "But May your already sleeping with Dawn, there's no room for me in there." His eyes drifted away from May's as a blush of his own surfaced his cheeks, "A-And it would seem weird for a guy to be in a room with a bunch of girls."

"You're not a pervert are you?" May chuckled, finally letting her fingers unlace from her friends shirt.

"N-NO!" Ash's face burned even more and his hands were up in a waving fit, "I-I would never- I mean why would you think-?"

"I'm just kidding!" her laugh interrupted him and she fanned a hand to her chest, "Ash I would never think of you like that!" Another fit of laughs and an annoyed look from Ash sent May leaning against the wall for support. Panting and smiling again May glanced again to a very embarrassed teen, and tried to calm down, "Sorry, It's just…your face is so…so funny!"

"Well, I'm glad you got a good laugh out of my funny face then!" Ash pouted, something that shouldn't look so natural to the always smiling teen, and he turned his head, "I guess I should take my funny face down to the lobby then."

"No no, I'm sorry" Her hand feathered inside his, and she gave it a little tug, "Come on, let's get some sleep." Ash's face was burning red, and he nodded, lowering his lashes in embarrassment. A snicker came from May as she opened the door, and entered into the hotel room.

The set up was fairly the same as his and Brock's. Two beds sat parallel to each other and a large chair occupied the corner of the room. Dark wooden cabinets were pressed up against the Mint colored walls, and they even had the same bathroom too. Ash's eyes found a mangled nest of hair on the bed nearest the end of the room, chuckling softly when the head started to roll and snore. Well Dawn sure was getting her beauty sleep. Ash felt May's warm hands leave his and his eyes followed her slowly making her way to one of the wooden cabinets, opening them to retrieve a few blankets. Ash noticed her wince and gasp when she stretched to grab a heavy blanket on the top shelf. Ash sighed, and glided over to help her out with the rest of the blankets.

"You okay May?" Ash removed a few blankets from her hands, earring a thank you in return, "Does your legs hurt?"

Her crystal eyes connected with his anxious ones and played a soft smile, "It's not that bad, just a little sore that's all." Her sight fanned on her friend's arms, and she reached out to gently caress it. "It's you who I should be asking. You've been hiding your pain all day haven't you?" Ash stiffened. May's eyes softened, "I mean, you should know by now that I can easily tell when you're hiding something from me."

They're eyes met again and a tingle went up his spine. Of course he knew, but he really wished that she didn't. He didn't like making people worry or feel bad for him. Not meaning it, Ash smiled, "I know May, but I'm okay now so...don't worry about me okay?" Walking past her he found a spot on the floor near the chair and threw the blankets on the ground, "I-I'm going to sleep here is that okay? Ah, thank you by the way for-"

Arms tightly wrapped around him in a warm embrace, and a nose was pressed firmly into his collar bone. Familiar hands clenched the back folds of his shirt and a low voice escaped from the girls lips, "There you go again, pushing your feelings away." Ash's hands clenched and he lowered his eyes down to the crown of May's head. "Why wouldn't I worry? The person who had appeared back into my life when I need him most just saved me today. You risked your life for mines and nearly made it out alive." Her nose skimmed over his chest as she moved to look up at him, "Ash you mean so much to me and seeing you fight back all these pains and worries leaves me feeling useless."

"I'm just doing what I believe is right." Ash defended himself, deciding not to look into his friends eyes. She would see that he was trying to fight back breaking down. "And you shouldn't feel that way because I'm honestly okay." Ash paused and crunched his eyebrows, noticing that what he said didn't sound right on his tongue. "I'm...fine."

"Ash..." His eyes were shadowed underneath his bangs, and his lips curled up a bit in irritation. She smiled, realizing she was close to getting him to open up. "Ash look at me."

For a moment, Ash thought about pushing her away and making an excuse to go next door and try and see if Brock had woken up. He didn't want her to see him break, didn't want her to know he could be broken down mentally and physically. It was always him that looked out for others, made sure others were feeling okay, and he was the one people reached out for. For the tables to turn, it scared him. It was new and awkward, and he didn't want to expose himself in such a pitiful way. He was terrified of what she would think of him, was scared of the thought that she would turn away once she knew he wasn't strong enough to hold back. Ash wanted to run.

But his eyes slowly lifted up to an warm smile, and eyes that withheld a knowledge of understanding. He stared at her.

May's lips twitched farther and she laid her head against his chest again, her hands coiling around him in comfort. "It's okay to feel sad. It's alright to get angry or show that your hurting. When your body is in pain, I'll bandage you up and make you laugh to forget about the pain. When your feeling really down and feel as if no one will understand" May's breath hitched and she snuggled her face closer into his shirt, "I'll give you a hug and remind you that you have someone always there to help you out no matter what."

That's when he knew he couldn't hold back any longer, and tightly wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace, and hid his face inside the crevasse of her neck. May gasped in surprise, but relaxed as she realized she had finally cracked open his shell. There was no need for conversation. No need for loud weeps or constant apologizes. Both held on to each other as if the other was a lifeline, and sunk down to the floor. Nothing was awkward when the teens broke apart, and without knowing how they both fell asleep together with the mess of blankets on the floor, both slept peacefully in a deep slumber. For May it was one of the best sleep she had ever had in a long time.

* * *

End~


	9. Chapter 7: Process

Chapter 7

May 22th: 4:45 AM [Johto region- _Greenfield (2556 days until retribution)_

Flecks of sunlight illuminated inside the hood less car as Aaron sat anxiously inside. Inmates remained to themselves, their knees bouncing and bumping into the other as their eyes fixated on their cuffs. Aaron's hazel eyes lifted up hopelessly at the somber scene. They all looked so miserable. So lost. Men young and old with the same expressions, same demeanor. Bodies slouched, heads down, mouths shut. Aaron's eyes trailed down the rows until his sight met with a guard's. Clenching his jaw he reluctantly bowed his head. The truck shook again as they roughly drove over another pot hole, knocking Aaron back against his seat.

He hated them.

Everyday was a battle for sanity, a gasping breath to hold onto that line that kept him above the high waters of giving up. It had been seven, tiring years of enduring and of lying to make himself believe that there was hope in getting out of his situation. The lies never seemed to give him hope these days. Just looking at his cellmates only proved that his will to escape, his hope to meet his wife again, was improbable.

Aaron took a deep breath, the scent of something sweet infiltrating his nose. It was intoxicating and familiar. Sniffing the air Aaron's eyes peered out a hole in the truck's cape. What he saw was a stretch of green grass covered in bright colorful flowers. There were large oak trees that bordered the land, large ancient bodies shivering in the winter wind and giving the forest shade. Mass mountains poked over the treetops, brilliantly white in contrast with the azure sky. Aaron couldn't look away.

The scenery was almost fake, straight out of a movie set or painting. There was a beautiful world out there kept away from him by a thick wall of concrete. It was unfair. To not see the trees or the mountains—hell there was a rare chance he even saw the sky. Slowly peering away from the hole Aaron landed an irritated glare at the guard watching him.

Dressed in a black bulletproof vest and helmet, the guard snorted at him, "Who're you looking at, freak?" Aaron remained silent. The man smirked, breaking contact for a moment to look at the other puzzled inmates.

"You know I'd watch where you are throwing those glares of yours boy" With a jump of his brow he smiled at Aaron, "Might tick somebody off"

Aaron exhaled slowly.

"I've heard a lot about you." The guard leaned forward with an amused expression. "You're the talk of the workplace, one hell of a celebrity. People think you're some kind of walking Grace."

"That's great in all but I don't really care."

The man made a face, "Ooh, you're a real cold fella, aren't you?"

Aaron shrugged his shoulders. "What can I say? I can only deal with a small amount of idiots in one sitting. Sorry pal."

"And a smart ass too."

The guard yanked Aaron by the collar of his jumpsuit, digging his icy blue glare into his. "You listen to me, freak. Don't start getting cocky around me, because I'm the last person you want to piss off. You may have everyone else shaking in their boots but you're nothing but a roach under the toe of my boot."

Aaron was taken aback, "What?"

"Now why don't you sit back like a good dog, keep your nose down, and your comments to yourself. Before I slam a car door in your face!" He waited for the fear to rush in Aaron's eyes, a beg to be let go, but in return he got a surprising low rumble of laughter.

"What's so damn funny? Do you want to be thrown out of the car!"

"Sounds tempting." Aaron gave him a sadistic smile, "So your men. They're afraid of me? Me who is in shackles and locked up in a cemented cell 24/7?" The guard flinched and broke eye contact. Looking him up and down, Aaron found himself intrigued.

Shoving Aaron back to his seat, the guard snapped another insult before walking to the end of the truck to lash his anger on the other men. Something sparked in Aaron that had his lips curving, and electricity stirring inside him.

_They were terrified_. It was a surprise no less but knowing he could somehow use that fear to his advantage gave him a flicker of hope. He had a chance. He actually had a chance to escape.

The truck rumbled to a jerking stop causing a few gasps and curses. Aaron wiggled around as the guards demanded them on their feet and began shoving them out of the truck. Shuffling behind a large man with a shaved head, Aaron absently followed the line, peering over the man's shoulders to see where he was. Looking up his eyes connected with high concrete walls, 20 to 40 heads bobbing as they all headed for it.

He eyed it alarmingly. Was this another facility? Was this perhaps one of those lavatories people have been whispering out?

A scream shot out from the side line, jostling Aaron, and the line slowed down to watch the commotion.

**"PLEASE, PLEASE!"**

A dirty, mangy man scrambled on the ground, kicking and screaming at the guards trying to sedate him.

His wide brown eyes reached for help desperately, "You can't put me in there! I'll die! I don't want to die! I will do anything! Just please! Please no, no, NO!"

Before another word could break the silence, a guard lashed a baton across the hysterical man's face, spewing spit and blood, knocking him out cold.

Aaron swallowed stale saliva.

After the violent miss-hap, the line was moving again, and the closer he was to the entrance, he suddenly recognized where he was. A lot of people who he had lived with for the past 5 years had talked about these lavatories. They focused more on the science of the operation rather than the training like the other facility was built for. This was where people who have passed the first tests of the ACH serum go.

Aaron's body grew timid as the large doors creaked closed behind him, the towering walls facing his back and the eerie white buildings staring back at him.

Rumors about this place were bad. Inmates said they conducted Experiments that knocked people out for weeks. That some men lost limbs and unlucky subjects died from the mysterious shots. He did not want to be here.

The crackled noise from a loud speaker ahead claimed the attention of the crowd of murmuring people and sending them into silence. Aaron balled his fists, eyes fluttering around to find the source of the speaker. A cough came from ahead and Aaron excused himself past the large man in front of him to see Daniel, gold eyes wide and smiling out to the crowd.

"Good Morning everyone! I hope the travel up here wasn't too troublesome on most of you, and if so we do apologize."

Daniel beamed and leaned over the wooden post where he stood, "As many of you are wondering, all 208 of you have been hand selected to join us at the main center to help dedicate to our wonderful cause! You are all strong, motivated, and are just the right kind of people we need here in Sector 1!"

The entire atmosphere grew tense. This was the begging of it all. The epicenter of all the madness.

"As you may have noticed this is a nicer facility compared to where you all have been staying previously. We tend to keep your stay as comfortable as possible and clean as possible so please clean after yourself."

Daniel scoffed and arched a brow, "After all, you all deserve a little pampering for the things you've gone through. Again, I do apologizes for that."

Something in Aaron's being fluttered and it wasn't butterflies.

"Welcome to Sector 1! I hope you will enjoy your stay and fight on to help create a better race for humanity!"

At the end of his speech everyone clapped except for the fear stricken crowd, the wash of approval from the workers and guards a reminder to everyone that there was no way out.

The line began to move again and Aaron swallowed his nerves. He could still find a way. He had to...because this maybe was his last destination.

* * *

"Why is Ash on the floor?"

"He got locked out of his room last night, so I invited him in."

A groan came from the growing consciousness of a raven boy, limbs tangled in blankets and head of hair styled like he'd been through a wind tunnel. For a moment, Ash groggily focused on breathing, ignoring the fact that it was time to get up, get ready, and face the day's events. He was distracted by his attempt of falling back to sleep by the sound of people talking somewhere in the room. They sounded like Dawn and May. He crunched his eyebrows in confusion, peeking out of one eye. What were they doing in his room?

Ash sat up with wide eyes and a blooming blush on his face.

"Ah, the guy himself is awake at last." Dawn rolled her eyes as she ran a brush through her smooth, dark hair. Crisscrossed on her bed, she sent a questioning glare to the embarrassed teen, "You two weren't doing anything weird were you?"

"W-What?" May stammered their embarrassment, making sure her eyes didn't connect with the wide, hazel eyes tacked on her. "No he was just locked out of his room! I swear I just gave him blankets and um-" The flooding memories of yesterday caused a rosy shade to fan her cheeks, and eyes to meet up with Ash's.

Ash mirrored her look of alarm and she suddenly lost her ability to speak straight, "Ah, Um he fell?"

"Ash fell?"

"No!" May ripped her gaze away and squeezed her eyes shut, "H-He fell asleep!"

Silence fell over the two as Dawn stared at them.

"...Right." with a twinge of a smile, she got up from the bed, pulling on her white beanie, and headed for the door, "Well I'm going to see if Brock is ready next door. Meet us downstairs at the breakfast bar alright?" Before she slipped through the door she sent a wink towards the two flustered teens, "Don't stay up here for too long."

The henge clicked shut.

Ash exhaled and picked himself off from the floor. That was one way to wake up. Gathering up his blankets (and clumsily folding them), he walked over to the cabinets to put them away. May was quiet, which left the atmosphere feeling awkward, but Ash didn't interrupt it. He was still wrapping his mind around what happened last night.

He had broken down.

May had seen him crying, sore, and torn down. She had peeled open his stubborn shell, seen him in his rawest form and was okay with it. Somewhere in his head, he thought it would go the opposite direction. After all their years traveling together, he had been the stronghold, he was the leader, the person who others came to for help. Never had he imagined it would finally switch on him.

Softly closing the cabinet doors, Ash glanced to May sitting on the bed. She bit on her nail nervously, cheeks still dusted with a light shade of pink.

Despite feeling exposed, Ash was kind of happy it was May who was there to comfort him. It only brought up the fact that Ash trusted her with his entire being, that he knew he could count on her for anything, even things as delicately as his well being.

"We should go meet up with don't you think?" May spoke, eyes still averting his.

"Yeah...can we talk?"

This made her look up. Ash saw the hesitation in her azure eyes, the way her eyebrows furrowed in confusion, but she nodded for him to continue. He gave her a disarming smile, jerking his head to motion her to make some room for him on the bed.

"I just think I should say thank you-"

"You don't have to." May gave him her own smile, "It's what friends do. We help each other out."

"Can you at least let me say it anyways?" May rolled her eyes but stayed quiet. "I wanted to say thank you for last night, for bossing and pushing me around to open up. You were always feisty when someone didn't do what you say."

"Takes one to know one." she laughed.

It was his turn to roll his eyes, "I get it I'm stubborn. Thankfully you are too. I don't think I could have opened up to just anyone."

May thought over that and smiled, "Are you saying you think you can only open up to me?"

"Yes"

She stared at him, smile faltering as her eyes widened with surprise. Ash's hazel eyes bore into her with a wave of calm and overflowing gratitude. "At least because of last night, I know that you are. So thank you."

"Yeah, no problem." she responded breathless.

"Right." he patted her back and got up from the bed, "So how about we go get some grub?" Reaching for her hand she lifted her up and smiled, "Maybe they'll have a buffet!"

"You said the magic words Ash." she giggled, and followed him out of the room.

oOo

Entering the dinning room, Ash and May were welcomed to the rows of white linen tables, gold hanging chandeliers, and elaborate decorations of paintings of the Sinnoh region, the town, and even Pokemon. It looked like a scene out of a palace for being an eating area in a hotel. Awed by the large room's appearance they were distracted as Dawn and Brock approached them with an excited Pikachu trailing behind them.

Ash snapped out of his trace as he saw the yellow mouse leap, holding his arms out to catch him and bring him into a hug. "Hey buddy!" The mouse cooed as Ash ran his fingers through his fur, "You're looking good this morning!" The mouse gave a purr of delight, nudging it's face into Ash's palm.

"You're looking pretty good yourself Ash." Brock grinned, "Are you feeling alright?"

"I'm a little sore, but nothing time can heal right?"

"Right." Brock leaned into the back of a chair, "Why don't you guys get something to eat and join us? Officer Jenny is expected to come soon to ask you two some questions."

May frowned at that, in which Ash mirrored, "Oh yeah, did you hear anything else about what happened?"

"I've been listening in on the news." Dawn interjected, "So far it's the same. Terrorists bombing the center and almost killing everyone inside. They discovered only two bodies, which are the people who helped that red headed chick."

"I see." Ash bit his lip and placed Pikachu on his shoulder, "I guess we'll just have to get the rest of the information when Jenny get's here."

"Also" Brock sighed as he straightened himself up, "Ash you need to call your Mom."

"What?"

"She's probably panicking right now with all the news covering what what happened at the center. She doesn't even know what happened to _you._ I suggest while May is being interviewed you go and give her a call."

Ash visibly swallowed, feeling sick. He had forgotten all about his mom. He thought about that time before this whole ordeal happened, when it was just him and his tear strained mother between a video screen. How she begged of him to stop what he was doing and come back home. How he saw his mother's best friend, face hard as stone and voice sharp as knives, demanding for him to do what his mother said.

_"__My husband was brutally murdered yesterday, and the people who killed Jason were actually after you."_

His weight faltered as Margret's words hit him with full force. He caught the back of a chair to steady himself as his friends gave him a worried glance.

"Hey are you okay?" Dawn extended her hand towards him.

"Will you excuse me for a moment?" He pushed the words out with a winded breath and turned on his heel, "I think I'm going to make that phone call."

"Ash?"

He ignored them, speeding out of the elaborate dinning room with food and golden chandeliers, and headed for the nearest video phone.


End file.
